7 Guatemalan youths killed in shootout between suspected gang members

Seven Guatemalan youths were killed in a shootout between rival gangs on a road near the capital, police said Sunday.

Authorities believe the gun battle, which took place Saturday night in Guatemala City's northern suburbs, was between the Pandilla 18 and Mara Salvatrucha gangs, said police spokesman Faustino Sanchez.

Among the dead was a 15-year-old boy, Sanchez said. No arrests had been made Sunday.

Youth gangs are rampant in Guatemala, and as few as 2 percent of the country's more than 5,000 homicides a year are solved.