By Breaking Belize News Staff (HP): Thirteen years separate them, but the 2013 Dean and Plues Street massacre and this week’s Coastal Highway attack share a chilling pattern.
In both cases, multiple people were killed in a single, brutal attack. In 2013, four men were found murdered inside an apartment in Belize City, their throats cut. This week, gunmen ambushed a vehicle on the Coastal Highway near Mile 30, leaving several people dead.
Both attacks sent waves of fear through communities. In 2013, businesses shut their doors and the US Embassy advised its citizens to avoid Belize City over fears of retaliation. Now, a state of emergency has been declared for Southside Belize City and parts of the Belize and Cayo Districts as officials move to contain the violence.
The reach of this week’s declaration, extending beyond Belize City into the Cayo District, signals how widely officials believe the threat has spread.
Both moments also brought urgent questions about policing and accountability. In 2013, relatives and residents accused the police Gang Suppression Unit of involvement, claims strongly denied by its commander, then Prime Minister Dean Barrow and then Commissioner Allen Whylie. Then Opposition Leader Francis Fonseca called for an independent Commission of Inquiry.
Today, Opposition Leader Tracy Panton is demanding a clear national security strategy, questioning mediation talks with gang leaders and asking what happened to the promised replacement for the Leadership Intervention Unit.
There is no indication the two incidents are connected, and none should be assumed.
But the similarities are a sobering reminder that more than a decade later, Belize is still struggling to break the cycle of violence, and families are still waiting for the safety and answers they deserve.
The post From Dean Street to the Coastal Highway: mass killings shake Belize again appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Breaking Belize News Staff (HP): Thirteen years separate them, but the 2013 Dean and Plues Street massacre and this week’s Coastal Highway attack share a chilling pattern. In both cases, multiple people were killed in a single, brutal attack. In 2013, four men were found murdered inside an apartment in Belize City, their throats
The post From Dean Street to the Coastal Highway: mass killings shake Belize again appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.