Venezuelan prison stand-off ends

14 July 2011 Last updated at 06:52 GMT Troops controlled areas outside the El Rodeo prison in Venezuela for nearly a month 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 prisoners left the El Rodeo prison, after some 60 armed prisoners surrendered, officials said.

Authorities said that four inmates were shot dead by National Guard troops as they tried to escape.

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.

Venezuelan troops eventually took over a part of the jail known as El Rodeo 1.

But hundreds of other prisoners remained holed up in the other wing, El Rodeo 2.

The authorities said about 60 inmates there were using guns to exert control over fellow prisoners.

Nearly a month after the first riots, the Venezuelan Interior and Justice Minister, Tareck El Aissami, said some of the armed leaders had 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 yards," Mr El Aissami said. "We celebrate the triumph of peace, dialogue."

Relatives camped outside the prison, in the town of Guatire, throughout the crisis

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 families remained outside the prison waiting for the latest information on the health and the likely destination of their family members.

The government said that the 831 inmates evacuated from El Rodeo were being 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.

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Venezuelan troops storm riot jail

17 June 2011 Last updated at 22:42 GMT Venezuelan National Guard troops overseeing sitting inmates during the operation to regain control At least 3,500 troops from the Venezuelan National Guard have stormed a prison near the capital, Caracas in an attempt to regain control there.

It follows a riot last Sunday between two rival gangs, in which 21 inmates were killed, and many more injured.

Government official Nestor Reverol said the troops had now reasserted control over three-quarters of inmates at the Rodeo prison.

Some prisoners have resisted, and gunfire has been heard inside.

Reports suggest the clashes broke out as troops tried to disarm some of the prisoners.

Notoriously overcrowded

The government says at least one member of the security forces has been killed, and another 19 injured.

So far, it is not clear if there have been casualties amongst the inmates.

The security forces have also fired tear gas in an effort to disperse groups of relatives of the inmates, who have gathered outside the jail.

Some angry relatives threw stones and other missiles at the troops.

The Venezuelan vice-president, Elias Jaua, has sought to reassure the prisoners' relatives.

In a televised speech, he explained to them why the government needed to take action.

"The intervention we're carrying out today isn't to massacre their relatives," he said, "it's to protect the lives of more than 5,000 inmates."

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights issued a statement on Thursday calling for the Venezuelan authorities "to take concrete steps to protect the life and physical integrity of persons deprived of liberty".

Venezuelan prisons are notoriously overcrowded and there have been a series of riots since the beginning of the year.

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