{"id":9120,"date":"2026-01-19T06:10:47","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T06:10:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=9120"},"modified":"2026-01-19T06:10:47","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T06:10:47","slug":"guatemalas-president-declares-30-day-state-of-emergency-after-prison-riots-prison-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=9120","title":{"rendered":"Guatemala\u2019s president declares 30-day state of emergency after prison riots | Prison News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>President Bernardo Arevalo issues the order after at least seven police officers killed in apparent reprisal for authorities quelling riots, ending hostage-taking in three prisons.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"byline byline--single-avatar\">\n<div class=\"avatars-container\">\n<div class=\"responsive-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Al-Jazeera-Erin-1-1754975994.jpg?resize=96%2C96&amp;quality=80 96w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 96px) 96px, 96px\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-dates\">\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Published On 19 Jan 2026<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">19 Jan 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share\" data-testid=\"rich-share\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__button-wrapper\"><button class=\"rich-share__button row\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><\/p>\n<p>Click here to share on social media<\/p>\n<p><svg class=\"icon icon--share2 icon--primary icon--16 \" viewbox=\"0 0 20 16\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><title>share2<\/title><path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M11.688 9.048c-.659 0-1.252.282-1.673.733l-4.92-2.45c.016-.115.028-.232.028-.352 0-.117-.011-.23-.027-.343l4.913-2.423a2.285 2.285 0 0 0 1.68.739C12.964 4.952 14 3.899 14 2.6 14 1.302 12.965.25 11.688.25S9.377 1.302 9.377 2.601c0 .117.01.23.027.343L4.49 5.367a2.285 2.285 0 0 0-1.68-.739C1.536 4.628.5 5.681.5 6.979c0 1.299 1.035 2.35 2.312 2.35.659 0 1.252-.281 1.673-.731l4.92 2.45a2.357 2.357 0 0 0-.029.351c0 1.299 1.035 2.351 2.312 2.351S14 12.698 14 11.399s-1.035-2.35-2.312-2.35Z\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>Guatemala\u2019s president has declared a state of emergency following a weekend eruption of violence during which gang members took dozens of hostages across three prisons and killed at least seven police officers in the capital in apparent retribution, after the authorities regained control of facilities where inmates had rioted.<\/p>\n<p>President Bernardo Arevalo issued a 30-day order on Sunday, which restricts civil liberties and allows security officers to arrest or question individuals without prior court approval. The emergency order takes immediate effect, although it still needs to be approved by Guatemala\u2019s legislature.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 4 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>\u201cThese murders were carried out with the intention of terrorising the security forces and the population so that we give up in the fight against gangs and their regime of terror. But they will fail,\u201d Arevalo said in a nationwide address.<\/p>\n<p>The president said all hostages had been freed and declared three days of state mourning following the attacks.<\/p>\n<p>The prison riots began on Saturday after the administrators moved to limit the privileges of gang leaders, including Aldo Duppie, the imprisoned leader of Guatemala\u2019s Barrio 18 gang.<\/p>\n<p>Barrio 18 and its rival Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) were designated as \u201cforeign terrorist organizations\u201d by the administration of United States President Donald Trump in September, followed by Guatemala\u2019s Congress a month later.<\/p>\n<p>Gang-affiliated inmates took 46 prison guards and staff hostage across three prisons in and around Guatemala City on Saturday, including the maximum-security prison holding Duppie, who is better known by his nickname El Lobo or The Wolf.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4250855\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4250855\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-4250855\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2026-01-19T005841Z_1274367014_RC204JAD87HQ_RTRMADP_3_GUATEMALA-PRISON-1768797809.jpg?w=770&amp;resize=770%2C513&amp;quality=80\" alt=\"Law enforcement officers escort the leader of the Guatemala branch of Barrio 18 (M-18) gang Aldo Dupie Ochoa Mejia, alias &quot;El Lobo&quot;, following security forces regaining control of the Renovacion 1 prison where inmates rioted and took hostages to demand greater privileges for a gang leader, in a location given as Escuintla, Guatemala, in this handout image released on January 18, 2026. National Civil Police\/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4250855\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Law enforcement officers escort Aldo Duppie, the imprisoned leader of Guatemala\u2019s Barrio 18 gang, after regaining control of the prison where inmates rioted in this handout image released on January 18, 2026 [Handout\/National Civil Police via Reuters]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The riot at El Lobo\u2019s prison was broken up by a lightning raid early on Sunday morning by police and the military, followed by raids on two more prisons the same day. The Barrio 18 leader was photographed in the custody of security forces wearing a blood-stained shirt.<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after the raids ended, retaliatory attacks began on police officers, killing at least seven and injuring 10, according to authorities. Some media reports listed the number of deaths as eight police officers and one suspected gang member.<\/p>\n<p>Interior Minister Marco Antonio Villeda earlier linked the police officers\u2019 deaths to gang reprisals \u201cin response to the actions the Guatemalan state is taking against them\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The army will \u201cremain on the streets\u201d of Guatemala to continue its crackdown on gang members, according to Defence Minister Henry Saenz.<\/p>\n<p>The US Embassy in Guatemala City on Sunday lifted its \u201cshelter-in-place order\u201d issued for staff over the weekend following \u201ccoordinated, armed attacks on police in several zones of Guatemala City\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Bernardo Arevalo issues the order after at least seven police officers killed in apparent reprisal for authorities quelling riots, ending hostage-taking in three prisons. Published On 19 Jan 202619 Jan 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Guatemala\u2019s president has declared a state of emergency following a weekend eruption of violence [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latin-america-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9120"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9120\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}