Guatemala: Coup Against the Left

An army curfew was imposed at 8 p.m., and during the night, gunfire rattled through the streets of Guatemala City. By 6 a.m., the army went on the radio with an announcement for Guatemala's 3,800,000 people. President Miguel Ydigoras Fuentes, 67, the cagy old soldier who had only a year to go before completing his elected six-year term of office, had been overthrown. In command of a military junta was Defense Minister Enrique Peralta Azurdia, 54, who was assuming control for the "good of the nation."

The coup was not aimed at Ydigoras—one of Central America's stoutest anti-Castro fighters, though...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!