GUATEMALAN President Bernardo Arevalo has appointed a new attorney general and head of the prosecutor’s office, putting an end to his fierce, years-long struggle with former top prosecutor Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by 40 countries for obstructing anti-corruption efforts.

Tuesday’s appointment of lawyer Gabriel Estuardo Garcia Luna was a victory for the president, who has often clashed with prosecutors he accuses of undermining Guatemala’s justice system and making politically motivated arrests.

With Ms Porras in charge, the prosecutor’s office repeatedly made efforts to block Mr Arevalo from taking office, sparking international rebuke and a fierce struggle with the president.

The attorney general’s office, which is supposed to be independent of the presidency, has been plagued by corruption allegations for years.

In a national address on Tuesday, Mr Arevalo said he had decided to appoint Mr Garcia Luna with effect from May 17, when Ms Porras’s term ends.

“The Public Ministry is getting a new authority who does not come to serve a president, the government of the day, or particular or spurious political interests,” the president said.

Ms Porras has been accused of seeking to criminalise former justice officials, journalists, political opponents and even Mr Arevalo himself.