Rio de Janeiro, Nov 26 (IANS): Seven suspected drug traffickers were killed in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro city in two clashes with a rival criminal gang and the police, officials said.
The shootout on Saturday took place in the favela (slum area) of Caju, close to the port of Rio de Janeiro, when a drug trafficking group tried to encroach on the territory controlled by a rival group, resulting in an intense firefight, Xinhua reported.
Upon being notified, military police officers arrived on the scene, and took on both armed gangs.
The shootouts left seven persons killed, while the police arrested 11 people, and seized 14 firearms, 790 rounds of ammunition, four grenades, two radio communicators and a number of bullet proof jackets.
President Michel Temer has dispatched thousands of extra police personnel and soldiers to the city to bring the violence under control.