President Alejandro Giammattei said he would veto the bill days after his allies pushed it through the legislature, a move that surprised analysts, human rights activists and officials.
On Monday, elPeriodico, an investigative daily in Guatemala, published its final edition after more than 26 years. Its executive editor is in jail and some of its reporters are in exile.
Guatemala’s first round of elections on Sunday is as much about who’s not on the ballot as who is, after courts barred leading candidates from running.
Bernardo Arévalo, a professorial lawmaker, stunned Guatemala’s establishment by advancing to a second round against Sandra Torres, a former first lady.
Outsiders overperformed, underscoring the volatility of Latin American politics. Candidates calling to emulate El Salvador’s crackdown on crime did not do well.
La policía dijo que entre los arrestados se encuentra el líder del grupo implicado en la operación de contrabando en 2022. Este se enfrenta a la extradición a Estados Unidos.
The case against José Rubén Zamora became a sign of crumbling democracy in Guatemala and a symbol of threats against press freedom across Latin America.
The authorities say at least 160 children and teenagers may have been victims of human trafficking and other crimes on a farm run by an ultra-Orthodox sect, Lev Tahor.
“I’m not going to deny the reality — there’s no good explanation,” the interior minister said of how the 20 inmates had slipped out, perhaps over a period of time.