The
Burning of the Spanish Embassy (sometimes called the
Spanish Embassy Massacre or the
Spanish Embassy Fire) refers to the
peaceful occupation of the
Spanish Embassy in
Guatemala City,
Guatemala, on January 31st, 1980, by indigenous peasants and their allies and the subsequent police raid that resulted in a fire which destroyed the embassy and left 36 people dead. The incident has been called "the defining event" of the
Guatemalan Civil War.