Five inmates dead after bloody three-hour prison shootout between rival gangs
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Five inmates have died during a bloody three-hour prison gang brawl on Thursday.
39 further guards and prisoners were injured in the shootout, with some in serious condition, authorities have said.
The long confrontation, which involved live ammunition and at least one grenade, began when members of the Barrio 18 gang entered a section for the rival Mara Salvatrucha 13 gang.
The La Tolva prison, based in the east of Tegucigalpa, houses more than 1,5000 inmates.
13 of those hurt are in serious condition, prosecutor Sara Gamez told local news media.
Prisons in Honduras have been under military control since the end of 2019.
They are the site of frequent violence between the country's two largest street gangs as well as organized crime gangs, news agency Reuters reports
In December 2019, 18 inmates died during a gang dispute at a prison in the tourist city of Tela on the country's Atlantic coast.
Three days later, another 19 people were killed amid gang brawls at the El Porvenir prison, 80 km (50 miles) east of Tegucigalpa, authorities said.
Some 25 overcrowded prisons in Honduras house more than 22,000 inmates, where human rights organizations have criticised a lack of food, unsanitary conditions, and corruption.
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