Clashes between police and gangs in Brazil, 13 people died

(CLO) Thirteen people have been killed in a wave of violence between police and criminal gangs over the past four days in the city of Porto Velho, capital of Rondonia state in Brazil's Amazon region.

Eight people have been killed in gang attacks and five others in clashes with police since Tuesday morning, according to information from the Rondonia Security Service.

A corner of Porto Velho city. Photo: Guilherme Jófili

Criminals set fire to 20 buses, mostly school buses, in protest against police crackdowns. In response, local authorities were forced to restrict the operating hours of public transport and deploy police escorts for buses to ensure safety.

Given the complex developments of the situation, the federal government has deployed the National Public Security Force to Rondonia to assist state police in controlling the wave of violence for at least 90 days.

According to G1 news site, Porto Velho police believe the attacks were retaliation by the Comando Vermelho gang for police raids on a residential area controlled by the gang.

Comando Vermelho was founded in Rio de Janeiro state, thousands of miles from the Amazon, but has become the most powerful gang in the region in recent years.

According to the latest report by the Brazilian Public Security Forum, the crime rate in the Amazon region is rising rapidly. In 2023, the region recorded 34 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, nearly double the national average.

For decades, the Amazon region has faced land conflicts over farm expansion, but recently the violence has largely stemmed from gang disputes over control of key drug trafficking routes that connect cocaine-producing countries to consumer markets.

Rondonia state borders Bolivia, one of the world's largest cocaine producers, and has become a major drug trafficking route. Over the past 10 years, police have seized about 20 tons of cocaine in Rondonia.

Renato Sergio de Lima, President of the Brazilian Public Security Forum, stated: “Amazon is an ideal environment for criminals to operate. Gangs control the territory and set the rules.”

Hong Hanh (according to The Guardian, Reuters, BRN)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/dung-do-giua-canh-sat-va-cac-bang-dang-o-brazil-13-nguoi-thiet-mang-post330942.html