Overview
- President Bernardo Arévalo’s decree took effect Tuesday for 15 days, replacing the monthlong estado de sitio with a framework that no longer permits arrests without a judge’s order and does not require congressional approval.
- Authorities said the emergency phase yielded 83 arrests of high‑risk gang members, a roughly 50% drop in homicides, a 33% decline in extortion, five tons of cocaine seized, and seven extraditions to the United States.
- Officials reported dismantling prison communication networks and completing a prison census to disrupt coordination between jailed leaders and street gangs.
- Under the Sentinel Plan, police and soldiers are deploying joint patrols in Guatemala City and surrounding municipalities, focusing on zones with high rates of extortion and assault.
- The shift follows a surge of gang violence that included coordinated prison uprisings and attacks blamed on Barrio 18 that left 11 police officers dead, as public concern over safety persists and some residents consider relocating to El Salvador.