State of Emergency Expires

The State of Emergency (SOE) in Belize City, the Belize District, and parts of the Cayo District officially ended on Friday, June 2. Authorities have confirmed that individuals detained under the emergency powers have been released.

The SOE was put in place last month in response to a spike in gang-related violence, with Police Commissioner Richard Rosado calling it a security threat that had escalated to a “critical level” in a May interview.

Minister of Home Affairs, Kareem Musa, told News 5 that the police and relevant officials met to review the situation and decided there was no need to extend the SOE.