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Venezuelan prison stand-off ends after 27 days | Venezuelan prison stand-off ends after 27 days |
(about 6 hours later) | |
Police in Venezuela have regained control of a prison east of the capital, Caracas, after a stand-off that lasted for 27 days. | Police in Venezuela have regained control of a prison east of the capital, Caracas, after a stand-off that lasted for 27 days. |
More than 800 inmates have now given up their weapons and left the El Rodeo prison in minibuses. | More than 800 inmates have now given up their weapons and left the El Rodeo prison in minibuses. |
They are undergoing medical examinations and will be taken to two other prisons. | They are undergoing medical examinations and will be taken to two other prisons. |
The stand-off began after troops stormed the prison to put an end to violent clashes between rival groups. | The stand-off began after troops stormed the prison to put an end to violent clashes between rival groups. |
More than 25 people died in the mid-June clashes and in subsequent attempts to regain full control of the prison, in the town of Guatire. | More than 25 people died in the mid-June clashes and in subsequent attempts to regain full control of the prison, in the town of Guatire. |
Venezuelan troops eventually took over a part of the jail known as El Rodeo 1, which accounted for some three-quarters of the inmates. | |
But hundreds of armed prisoners remained in control of the other wing, El Rodeo 2. | |
The authorities said about 60 inmates there were using guns to exert control over the other prisoners. | |
Several attempts to negotiate with the leaders of the prison's two factions failed. | Several attempts to negotiate with the leaders of the prison's two factions failed. |
Nearly a month after the first riots, the Venezuelan Interior and Justice Minister, Tareck El Aissami, said some of the leaders of prison groups agreed to surrender. | |
He said the inmates had been given guarantees that their human rights would be respected. | |
"We've managed for all of them to come down to the patios," Mr El Aissami said. "We celebrate the triumph of peace, dialogue." | "We've managed for all of them to come down to the patios," Mr El Aissami said. "We celebrate the triumph of peace, dialogue." |
A spokesperson for prisoners' relatives, Grisel Zorrilla, told the Associated Press news agency that the inmates showed signs of dehydration but were generally in good health. | |
Hundreds of relatives remain outside the prison waiting for the latest information on the health and the likely destination of their family members. | |
The government has announced that the 831 inmates who were evacuated from El Rodeo on Wednesday will be sent to two other jails, Yare 2 and Tocuyito. | |
Venezuelan prisons are notoriously overcrowded and there has been a series of riots since the beginning of the year. | |
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights says nearly 500 people died in prison violence last year. | The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights says nearly 500 people died in prison violence last year. |