Guatemala City, July 9 (RHC)-- Guatemala's National Institute of Forensic Sciences (Inacif) reports that the country saw a 9.9 percent increase in the homicide rate during the first six months of 2022, compared to the same period in 2021.

The data provided by the agency highlights that between January and June of this year, 2,119 people were murdered, in contrast to the 1,927 victims reported in 2021. The Central American nation presented an average of 11.7 homicides per day.

Of the total number reported, Inacif specified that 1,351 of the murders, or 63 percent, were committed with firearms.  On the other hand, with respect to the murders of women, INACIF also detected an increase of 15.5 percent compared to the previous year. Between January and June of this year, 341 women were murdered, while in 2021 the figure was 295.

According to the Guatemalan institution, this increasing trend in the number of murders also occurred in 2021 compared to 2020.  Inacif detailed that in 2021 4,078 people were murdered in Guatemala, while in 2020 the cases reached 3,500, which represents an increase of 16.5 percent.