</s>Military police took control Saturday of a prison in northeastern Brazil after fighting between rival gangs left 26 inmates dead, the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries.

A week after the violence first erupted, military police, including riot police and others, moved into the Alcacuz prison complex, outside the city of Natal. They were accompanied by an armored vehicle as a helicopter flew overhead. Authorities would not say how many officers entered the complex, but an Associated Press reporter saw about 40 go in.

A few hours after the operation began, Maj. Eduardo Franco, a military police spokesman, said the complex was again under police control.

A spate of violence has seized prisons in Latin America's largest country in recent weeks, leaving at least 126 dead since the beginning of the year. The fighting is between members of rival gangs, who clash over control of drug trafficking routes outside prison walls and have slaughtered one another inside penitentiaries in several Brazilian states.

The police forces now inside Alcacuz plan to separate rival prisoners, including by erecting a wall made of shipping containers.

The series of riots and grisly killings in Brazilian prisons in recent weeks has put a spotlight on overcrowding, underfunding and understaffing in the prison system. For instance, Alcacuz is home to more than 1,000 inmates, though it was built for 620. Images on TV and in newspapers of prisoners wielding weapons and cell phones have embarrassed President Michel Temer and put pressure on his administration to reform the system.

The violence at Alcacuz has also spilled over into Natal, where buses have been burned in recent days. The governor of Rio Grande do Norte state has said military forces are helping to patrol in the city.</s>NATAL, Brazil (AP) — Riot police are entering a prison in northeastern Brazil where 26 inmates were killed recently, in an attempt to separate rival gangs inside the complex.

A helicopter flew overhead Saturday as an armored vehicle and about 40 police forces including riot police entered the Alcacuz prison complex, which has been in control of the prisoners for several days. Authorities plan to erect a barrier of shipping containers to keep the gangs apart. Gang fighting in prisons in Brazil has left at least 126 dead in recent weeks.

The violence at Alcacuz has also spilled over to the nearby city of Natal, where buses have been burned in recent days. The governor Rio Grande do Norte state has asked the army for help retaking the prison and in patrolling Natal.</s>Military police entered a prison in northeastern Brazil on Saturday, establishing tenuous control after a week of chaos and fighting between rival gangs that left 26 inmates dead. The unrest was the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries, in which at least 126 people have been killed since the beginning of the year.

Start the conversation, or Read more at The Chronicle-Journal.</s>Military police have entered a prison in north east Brazil, establishing tenuous control after a week of chaos and fighting between rival gangs that left 26 inmates dead.

The unrest was the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries, in which at least 126 people have been killed since the beginning of the year. The fighting is typically between members of rival gangs that compete for control of drug trafficking routes outside prison walls.

A week after inmates first rioted at Alcacuz prison, riot police and other forces moved into the complex outside the city of Natal on Saturday. As a helicopter flew overhead, an armoured vehicle also entered the complex and later construction equipment was brought in.

Authorities would not say how many officers entered the complex, but an Associated Press reporter saw about 40 go in.

A few hours after the operation began, Eduardo Franco, a military police spokesman, said the complex was again under police control.

But Andre Azevedo, general commander of the Military Police in Rio Grande do Norte state, painted a bleak picture of the situation inside, saying that the entire system had broken down and maintaining control would be an ongoing battle. Many of the inmates are armed.

“Every time the police enter... they take away weapons that they find, but this is not enough to guarantee that tomorrow there won't be weapons,” he told reporters late Saturday. In the vast complex, prisoners can easily find or make weapons, he said.

In the confrontation at Alcacuz, authorities said members of the Sao Paulo-based First Command, Brazil's largest criminal gang, known by the Portuguese acronym PCC, fought with local gang Crime Syndicate of Rio Grande do Norte.

Police forces have begun building a wall of shipping containers to separate rival prisoners from one another. Eventually, the temporary measure will be replaced with a concrete wall.

In the violence, many of the dead were dismembered, and investigators from the medical examiner's office on Saturday found several body parts, including a full skull, parts of two other skulls and other bones. Given the state of decomposition of the skulls, the office said they belonged to people killed in the violence a week ago.

Of the 26 bodies previously sent to the medical examiner, 22 have been identified, the office said in a statement.

Much of the prison appears to have been damaged in the previous week. From a vantage point outside, holes could be seen in the walls and rooftops of buildings within the complex. Debris littered the ground. Even before the recent destruction, the prison was commonly called “Swiss cheese” because it was built on sand dunes, and prisoners over the years have managed to tunnel out.

G1 reported another riot Saturday in a prison in Pernambuco state, also in the northeast. It quoted officials as saying one prisoner was killed and 13 injured in the violence before authorities regained control.

The series of riots and grisly killings in Latin America's largest country has put a spotlight on overcrowding, underfunding and understaffing in the prison system.

For instance, Alcacuz is home to more than 1,000 inmates, though it was built for 620. Images on TV and in newspapers of prisoners wielding weapons and cellphones have embarrassed President Michel Temer and put pressure on his administration to reform the system.

Authorities in Brazil are under pressure to crack down on crime, in general, and many states have struggled to do that in the context of shrinking budgets amid an economic recession.</s>Inmates threw rocks at each other and set up barriers inside a Brazilian penitentiary where 26 prisoners were recently killed in confrontations.

Live images on Globo TV showed hundreds of prisoners in the yard of Alcacuz Penitentiary outside the northeast city of Natal.

Inmates appeared to be separating themselves into two groups with makeshift barriers of pieces of wood, mattresses and other material. Injured prisoners were seen being carried off. No prison guards could be seen on the ground.

"We need help immediately," Robinson Faria, the Governor of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, told CBN radio.

Faria said he had asked President Michel Temer to immediately dispatch troops from the Armed Forces.

Beyond the prison, Faria said he wanted the troops to help patrol the streets of Natal, where several buses were burned.

Authorities said they were investigating whether the burning was connected to turmoil in the prison.

Up until now, police were only guarding the outside of the prison to keep inmates from escaping and shooting tear gas to break up fighting.

Authorities have reported that several inmates had been injured, but do not yet know if any have died.

Confrontations between two gangs in the prison erupted over the weekend, resulting in the 26 deaths.

Authorities said members of the Sao Paulo-based First Command, Brazil's largest criminal gang, known by the Portuguese acronym PCC, fought with local gang Crime Syndicate of Rio Grande do Norte.</s>NATAL, Brazil — Military police entered a prison in northeastern Brazil on Saturday, establishing tenuous control after a week of chaos and fighting between rival gangs that left 26 inmates dead.

The unrest was the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries, in which at least 126 people have been killed since the beginning of the year. The fighting is typically between members of rival gangs that compete for control of drug trafficking routes outside prison walls.

A week after inmates first rioted at Alcacuz prison, riot police and other forces moved into the complex outside the city of Natal on Saturday. As a helicopter flew overhead, an armored vehicle also entered the complex and later construction equipment was brought in. Authorities would not say how many officers entered the complex, but an Associated Press reporter saw about 40 go in.

A few hours after the operation began, Maj. Eduardo Franco, a military police spokesman, said the complex was again under police control.

But Col. Andre Azevedo, general commander of the Military Police in Rio Grande do Norte state, painted a bleak picture of the situation inside, saying that the entire system had broken down and maintaining control would be an ongoing battle. Many of the inmates are armed.

“Every time the police enter ... they take away weapons that they find, but this is not enough to guarantee that tomorrow there won't be weapons,” he told reporters late Saturday. In the vast complex, prisoners can easily find or make weapons, he said.

In the confrontation at Alcacuz, authorities said members of the Sao Paulo-based First Command, Brazil's largest criminal gang, known by the Portuguese acronym PCC, fought with local gang Crime Syndicate of Rio Grande do Norte.

Police forces have begun building a wall of shipping containers to separate rival prisoners from one another. Eventually, the temporary measure will be replaced with a concrete wall.

In the violence, many of the dead were dismembered, and investigators from the medical examiner's office on Saturday found several body parts, including a full skull, parts of two other skulls and other bones. Given the state of decomposition of the skulls, the office said they belonged to people killed in the violence a week ago.</s>NATAL, Brazil — Inmates wielding knives, machetes and cellphones held their ground Friday at a prison in northeast Brazil where 26 were recently killed.

Tensions at the Alcacuz prison outside the city of Natal remained high a day after inmates from rival gangs fought in the yard and set up doors and mattresses as barriers.

Several inmates were injured, but authorities had not regained control of the prison and thus couldn't provide specifics. Meanwhile, there were fears that more violence would spill over into the city, where 20 buses have been burned over two days.

"No one is giving us information about the situation inside," complained Luciana Apolinario, one of the mostly women camped outside. Apolinario, whose son is serving a drug-trafficking sentence, said families were learning about what was happening from prisoners with phones.

Latin America's largest nation has experienced a wave of prison killings in recent weeks, with at least 126 dead since the beginning of the year.

At the Alcacuz prison, inmates from the local Northern Syndicate gang stayed in the yard, waving their weapons while periodically participating in prayer and song. Meanwhile, inmates from the First Command, Brazil's largest criminal network with its base in Sao Paulo, periodically went inside their pavilion.

Stretchers were dropped into an area of the prison controlled by First Command members, and three injured inmates were removed by being pulled up. One was shot in the neck, the bullet still lodged in his body.

While they were being pulled up, the women watching from outside screamed. Some had their faces covered, underscoring the fear that the beef between gangs could spill out of the prison.

Guards and military police have not gone inside the penitentiary, instead periodically breaking up fights by shooting tear gas from above.

Army soldiers were expected to arrive late Friday after the governor of the state of Rio Grande do Norte called for their help to help maintain control.

A riot squad briefly entered the prison on Thursday evening to remove several inmates who had been injured during clashes. But they did not send inmates back to their cells.</s>NATAL, Brazil — Brazilian police say they have interrogated five inmates they believe were responsible for 26 killings during a prison riot this month.

The civil police say in a statement issued Sunday that the men were gang leaders and have been removed from the Alcacuz prison, where violence broke out just over a week ago.

Military police were only able to restore some semblance of control at Alcacuz on Saturday, and they are now separating rival gangs within the prison by building a wall of shipping containers.

At least 126 people have been killed in a spate of prison violence since the beginning of the year in Brazil. The fighting is typically between rival gangs.</s>NATAL, Brazil (AP) — Brazilian police say they have interrogated five inmates they believe were responsible for 26 killings during a prison riot this month.

The civil police say in a statement issued Sunday that the men were gang leaders and have been removed from the Alcacuz prison, where violence broke out just over a week ago.

Military police were only able to restore some semblance of control at Alcacuz on Saturday, and they are now separating rival gangs within the prison by building a wall of shipping containers.

Special Operations Battalion Police officers enter the Alcacuz prison amid tension between rival gangs in Nisia Floresta, near Natal, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017.Military police took control of the prison in northeastern Brazil after fighting between rival gangs left 26 inmates dead, the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

At least 126 people have been killed in a spate of prison violence since the beginning of the year in Brazil. The fighting is typically between rival gangs.

National Guard soldiers stand guard overlooking the Alcacuz prison as workers, top left, use a container as they start to build a wall to separate two rival gangs in Nisia Floresta, near Natal, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017. Military police took control of the prison in northeastern Brazil after fighting between rival gangs left 26 inmates dead, the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Inmates, top, watch as police officers enter the Alcacuz prison amid tension between rival gangs in Nisia Floresta, near Natal, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017. Military police took control of the prison in northeastern Brazil after fighting between rival gangs left 26 inmates dead, the latest in a spate of violence in the country's penitentiaries. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Brazilian police enter the Alcacuz prison outside the city of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, after a week of fighting leaves 26 inmates dead. At least 126 people have been killed in Brazil's prisons since the beginning of the year.