Hundreds of Mexicans flee to Guatemala due to violence in Chiapas

GUATEMALA.— Guatemalan President, Bernardo Arevaloconfirmed on Wednesday that Mexican families crossed the Guatemalan border in search of refuge, fleeing violence.

Mexican refugees would have reached at least two communities in Guatemala and already totals some 580 people, including girls, boys, women, men and the elderly, explained the Executive Secretariat of the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (CONRED), an entity that integrates the group of institutions that will provide care to mobilized people.

Arévalo explained at a press conference during a visit to the construction of a hospital in the department of Sololá that the Mexican families who crossed the border “are escaping the confrontation between groups that is taking place on the Mexican side.”

They began arriving Tuesday from Chiapas, a state where violence has soared due to disputes between drug-related organizations, to various points in the municipality of Cuilco, in the Huehuetenango department of Guatemala, CONRED told The Associated Press.

Mexico says there are no reports of displacement

On the Mexican side, the Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection of Chiapas said that had not received reports of displacements in the zone.

Neither the Mexican Foreign Ministry nor the National Guard immediately responded to a request for comment about Mexicans fleeing and seeking refuge in Guatemala.

He Sinaloa Cartel and that of Jalisco New Generationwho are engaged in a bloody battle in many parts of Mexico, have been fighting for control of migrant, drug and arms trafficking routes for over a year, especially in the border area with Guatemala.

For its part, the Guatemalan government, said President Arévalo, is coordinating care for them through the Ministry of Defense and local authorities of the department of Huehuetenango and the Municipality of Cuilco.

Mexicans flee to Guatemala

According to the agency APthe displaced families reported that they decided to abandon their homes in the face of the food shortages and conflict between organized crime groups in that area.

Among the displaced was an adult over 91 years olddiabetic who could not get her medications and Due to complications, he died on the way.according to the report. A child who had undergone surgery in his community receives postoperative treatments for its recovery.

Poverty in indigenous communities in Chiapas, combined with violence, has generated displacements of several communitiesSince 2024, thousands of Mexicans have fled from the south in search of refuge due to the violence of drug trafficking groups and the constant clashes that have left several dead and missing.

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