Prison battle takes big toll

AT least 37 people have been killed during clashes between armed inmates and security forces at a prison in southern Venezuela, state governor Liborio Guarulla said.

Mr Guarulla yesterday said the bloodshed came after fighting erupted between inmates and their jailers in Puerto Ayacucho, the capital of Amazonas state.

Security forces moved in to restore order at the facility, where the inmates seized control several weeks ago.

“At midnight special forces showed up and through the night we heard gunfire and explosions,” Mr Guarulla said.