Former Guatemala Dictator Rios Montt Is Convicted Of Genocide

Former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt heads out for the day after his trial session at the Supreme Court of Justice in Guatemala City, May 9, 2013. Voice of America

Former Guatemala Dictator Rios Montt Convicted Of Genocide -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt was found guilty on Friday of genocide and crimes against humanity during the bloodiest phase of the country's 36-year civil war and was sentenced to 80 years in prison.

Hundreds of people who were packed into the courtroom burst into applause, chanting, "Justice!" as Rios Montt received a 50-year term for the genocide charge and an additional 30 years for crimes against humanity.

It was the first time a former head of state had been found guilty of genocide in his or her own country.

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More News On The Conviction Of Former Guatemala Dictator Rios Montt Of Genocide

Former Leader of Guatemala Is Guilty of Genocide Against Mayan Group -- New York Times
Former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt guilty of genocide -- L.A. Times
Ex-Guatemala dictator Montt convicted of genocide, sentenced to 80 years -- CTV News/AP
Former Guatemalan dictator convicted of genocide and jailed for 80 years -- The Guardian
Guatemalan Ex-Military Leader Montt Found Guilty of Genocide -- RIA Novsoti
Guatemala's Rios Montt guilty of genocide -- CNN
Guatemala's Rios Montt found guilty of genocide -- BBC
Former Guatemalan Dictator Rios Montt Guilty of Genocide Charges -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Guatemalan Dictator Found Guilty of Genocide -- Voice of America
Profile: Guatemala's Efrain Rios Montt -- BBC

'Stage Of Siege' Declared In Guatemala After 'Massacre'

Guatemala's President Declares 'Stage Of Siege' After 'Massacre' -- CNN

Guatemala's President Alvaro Colom has declared a "state of siege" in a northern border province, ordering in the military after police found 29 migrant workers brutally killed on a farm over the weekend.

Colom, in a televised address late Monday, promised to challenge the drug dealers authorities believe are responsible for the killings, which have been described as a "massacre" by the state-run Guatemalan News Agency.

"Despite the few resources we have, even with the lack of military personnel, we will still come face to face with organized crime," he said.

One man was captured and two were killed during a shoot-out between suspected drug-runners and police, Colom said.

The killing spree, which officials said took place late Saturday into early Sunday, is one of the nation's worst since the end of the civil war in 1996.

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More News On Guatemala Declaring A "State of Siege"

Guatemala declares 'state of siege' after massacre -- Yahoo News/AFP
'Emergency' in Guatemala over killings -- Al Jazeera
Guatemalan President: Nation Must Confront Drug Violence -- Voice of America
Guatemala: Massacre work of Mexico drug gang Zetas -- Yahoo News/AP
Drug Gang Blamed for Guatemala Massacre -- Wall Street Journal
Guatemala Accuses Zetas Drug Cartel Of Carrying Out Petén Massacre -- Latin American News Dispatch
Police capture suspects of Guatemala killings -- BBC
Guatemala massacre survivor recalls gruesome ordeal -- BBC
Guatemalan president travels to site of massacre, beheadings -- Boston Herald/McClatchy News

Guatemala Is Now At War Against Mexico's Drug Cartels

Mexican Drug Cartels Draws Guatemalan Army To Jungles Where It Fought Civil War -- Washington Post

IN COBAN, GUATEMALA The once-fearsome Guatemalan army has returned to the jungles where it battled Marxist guerrillas a generation ago, this time to hunt shadowy Mexican drug traffickers fighting for control of strategic smuggling routes to the United States.

So serious is the perceived threat to national security that Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom has extended "a state of siege" and martial law in his country's Alta Verapaz province, where authorities say the soldiers are beating back an invasion by the Mexican cartel known as the Zetas.

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My Comment: This is a losing battle. The drug cartels are successful because they provide enormous wealth to those who are willing to take the risks to get involved in this trade. Because of extreme poverty and high unemployment .... places like Guatemala have become ideal recruiting grounds for the cartels .... a battle that the Guatemalan government and military have no hope of winning.

Guatemala Extends Its State Of Siege Against Mexican Drug gangs

Guatemala Extends State of Siege in Northern Province -- Wall Street Journal/AP

GUATEMALA CITY — Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom said he is extending a state of siege in a violent province on the border with Mexico that has been taken over by Mexico's brutal Zetas drug gang.

Mr. Colom said the monthlong state of siege that began on Dec. 19 when hundreds of police and soldiers were sent to Alta Verapaz province has been successful but that he'll extend it an extra month "because more needs to be done."

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Update: Outgunned Guatemala army extends battle with drug gangs -- Reuters

My Comment: This is not an easy battle for the Guatemalan government. The gangs are usually better equip than the military, and with poverty and misery widespread .... recruiting more members will not be a problem for the drug gangs.

Mexico's Drug Wars Take Hold In Guatemala

Guatemala Declares 'State Of Siege' To Combat Mexican Drug Cartel, Limiting Rights -- L.A. Times

The brutal Mexican drug-trafficking organization known as the Zetas has made inroads in Guatemala, controlling territory near the Central American country's border with southern Mexico and prompting the Guatemalan government on Sunday to declare a "state of siege" aimed at curbing the gang's growing power.

The state of siege declaration for the northern Guatemalan department of Alta Verapaz in turn prompted worry among human rights activists and the Guatemalan press. The declaration allows the government to detain suspects or conduct searches without warrants, and limits public gatherings and the news media.

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More News On Guatemala's War Against Mexico's Drug Gangs

Guatemala launches siege to reclaim violent north -- Washington Post
Guatemala seizes plane, guns, cash in anti-drug raids -- FOX News
Guatemala Declares a State of Siege -- Wall Street Journal
Guatemala fears Mexican drug gangs advancing -- BBC
Guatemala takes on the drugs gangs from Mexico -- BBC
Guatemala moves against Mexican Zetas drug gang -- BBC
In pictures: Charting Guatemala's violence -- BBC

Latin America's Drug Wars Expand To Guatemala

Guatemala Declares A State Of Siege -- Wall Street Journal

Government Says Northern Province Has Become Overrun by Mexican Drug-Trafficking Organization.

The Guatemalan government declared a state of siege Sunday in a province it said has become overrun by a Mexican drug-trafficking group, the latest sign that Mexico's powerful cartels have extended their reach into foreign lands.

The operation, which the government said would last at least a month, targets the northern province of Alta Verapaz, which officials described as a safe haven for Mexico's Los Zetas cartel.

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More News On Guatemala's War Against The Drug Cartels

Guatemalan military seizes drug-plagued province -- Washington Post/AP
Guatemala moves against Mexican Zetas drug gang -- BBC
Guatemala cracks down on drug gang -- Scotsman
Guatemalan State of Siege -- FOX News
US Navy Helps to Hunt Down Drug Runners in Guatemala -- FOX News
America's Third War: Fighting Drug Cartels in Guatemala -- FOX News
U.S. Concerned About Situation Along Mexico-Guatemala Border -- Latin American Herald Tribune

Mexican Cartel Threatens Guatemala President

Alvaro Colom: The threats are being taken very seriously as the killing of policemen in Mexico now happen almost daily Photo: AFP

From The Telegraph:

One of Mexico's most powerful drugs trafficking gangs has threatened to kill the President of Guatemala.

After receiving assassination threats to officials including the national head of police, the Guatemalan authorities warned President Alvaro Colom that he too was now the subject of "credible" threats - the latest sign that the cartels are seeking to extend their influence across Central America.

"We have received credible threats that the group 'The Zetas' are planning an attempt on the life of President Alvaro Colom," said Jesus Galeano of Guatemala's Secretariat of Strategic Intelligence.

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More News On Threats Against Guatemala's President

Police: Mexican Gunmen Threaten to Kill Guatemala’s President -- Latin American herald Tribune
Guatemala trains elite anti-drug unit amid threats -- Reuters
Mexican drug cartel threatens to kill Guatemalan president -- China View
Guatemala's new elite anti-narcotics Forces -- The Guatemala Times