Follow-Up: Guatemala Declares 30-Day State of Emergency in Two Departments After Lawmaker's Killing
Reuters reported on November 15 that Guatemalan authorities on Saturday decreed a state of emergency in the eastern departments of Zacapa and Izabal, banning gatherings and boosting powers for security forces, a week after lawmaker Julio Cesar Portillo was killed in an attack in Rio Hondo, Zacapa, on November 6, along with three police officers.
The decree limits outdoor gatherings and allows security officials to disperse groups by force, as well as to make arrests and enter residences without a warrant. It is effective immediately and through the next 30 days. The two neighbouring departments span an area roughly the size of Qatar.
Portillo was taken to a hospital after the shooting but later died of his injuries, and President Bernardo Arevalo later announced that three police officers were also killed. Authorities did not identify who was responsible, but the attack occurred amid heightened concerns over the influence of organized crime. Washington this week designated several crime groups operating in Zacapa as terrorist organizations and has accused them of ties to Mexican drug trafficking cartels.
"The Government of Guatemala remains committed to protecting the lives, safety, and peace of Guatemalan families," the government said in a statement, adding that the state of emergency aimed to protect the local population.
Related: Guatemalan lawmaker Portillo Paz killed in attack, three police escorts also killed
(Source: Reuters)
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：危地马拉国家宫（Palacio Nacional），位于危地马拉城（资料图）。照片：Simon Burchell 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons，本图已预裁为 16:9。 / Photo: The National Palace in Guatemala City, Guatemala (file photo). Photo by Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; pre-cropped to 16:9.
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