In a high-profile trial in Guatemala City, former head of Guatemala's army, Manuel Benedicto Lucas García, is facing charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, forced disappearances, and sexual violence against the Maya Ixil people. The trial, expected to include over 150 witnesses and 30 survivors of sexual violence, is shedding light on the atrocities committed during Guatemala's civil war.
During the civil war, which lasted 36 years, over 200,000 people lost their lives, with 83% of the victims being indigenous Maya. The former general is accused of ordering more than 30 massacres and destroying 23 villages in the Maya Ixil region, resulting in the death of at least 1,771 people.
