Guatemala City, Oct 10 (IANS/EFE): Seven members of a family, including two children, were shot dead Tuesday by unidentified individuals in a village in Guatemala, said authorities.

The massacre occurred in the early morning hours in Las Escobas while the family slept, deputy police chief Cayetano Chuc and fire department spokesman Sergio Vasquez said.

The village is located outside Villa Canales, a city about 22 kn south of Guatemala City.

A group of heavily armed men burst into the Gonzalez family's modest dwelling and opened fire with rifles.

Maria Concepcion Gonzalez, 50, her son, Enrique Gonzalez, 24, daughter-in-law Sandra, 25, and granddaughter Julissa, 8 months, died in the attack, Vasquez said.

The other family members killed in the attack have been identified as Encarnacion Gonzalez, 18, Roberto Gonzalez, 25, and Israel Gonzalez, 8, officials said.

Enrique Gonzalez's 4-year-old son, Leonel, was wounded in the left hand and three other children inside the house escaped unharmed, police said.

One of the survivors, identified only as Kevin, told radio stations that around 30 men entered the house and opened fire.

The people killed in the attack were members of the Gonzalez family and the massacre was linked to a land dispute, a relative, Maria Consuelo, said.

"I heard the screams and the shots. We got up to look, but the individuals had already fled. They wore black hats and gloves," the woman said.