By IANS,
Guatemala : At least seven inmates of a jail in eastern Guatemala were killed, five of them decapitated and burned, and 10 critically injured when rival groups clashed in one of the country’s worst prison riots in decades.
Rudy Esquivel, spokesman for the country’s prison administration, told Spain’s EFE news agency that five of the killed in Saturday’s riot at the Pavocinto Prison could not be identified because they “were decapitated and then burned.”
A sixth inmate died from gunshot wounds as he tried to flee his attackers, while another succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Ten other inmates with bullet and stab wounds were taken to a public medical centre.
The convicts “used automatic weapons, knives and gasoline to carry out the attacks,” a National Civil Police (PNC) official said.
Two prison guards who tried to stop the fighting were also seriously wounded.
After five hours of efforts, anti-riot police backed by army troops took control of the prison.