Guatemala mourns 10 police slain by gangsters amid state of emergency

State of emergency imposed after gang violence allows police to arrest suspected criminals without judicial order.Published On 20 Jan 2026Ten police officers have been killed in a wave of coordinated gangster attacks in Guatemala that began with prison riots in three facilities and fanned out onto the streets of the capital in retribution killings, leading the government to declare a state of emergency.Officials confirmed late on Monday that a 10th police officer died following the attacks, as the country’s lawmakers approved the 30-day state of emergency that had come into effect the previous day in a near-unanimous vote, according to news agency The Associated Press.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Guatemala’s president declares 30-day state of emergency after prison riotslist 2 of 3Guatemala declares 30-day state of emergency after prison riotslist 3 of 3Seven police officers killed after riots in three Guatemalan prisonsend of listThe violence erupted on Saturday when inmates from the notorious Barrio 18 gang took dozens of guards hostage at three prisons, and escalated the following day with attacks on police in and around Guatemala-city" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="6273" data-entity-type="location">Guatemala City after security forces regained control of a prison holding the gang’s leader, Aldo “El Lobo” Duppie.The authorities said the gang, which is reportedly involved in drug trafficking across Central America along with rival group Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), was demanding privileges for its members and leaders.On Monday, the government gazette published President Bernardo Arevalo’s declaration of the state of emergency, which limits freedom of action and demonstrations and allows police to arrest people without a judicial order if they are suspected gang members.The declaration, condemning the “coordinated actions” of the gangsters against state forces, which included “armed attacks against civilian authorities”, also gives police powers to prohibit the movement of vehicles in certain places or subject them to searches.