Brazil police separate gangs in prison

Heavily armed police on Wednesday entered the prison where 26 inmates were butchered in recent days and separated members of rival drug gangs waging a turf war that set off a wave of riots in Brazil's overcrowded penitentiary system.

About 220 gang members will be transferred in buses from the Alcacuz penitentiary in the state of Rio Grande do Norte to another jail at Parnamirim, outside the state capital, Natal, authorities said.

The police SWAT team searched the cells and founds firearms, a bulletproof jacket and a large quantity of knives, the state's security chief, Caio Bezerra, told reporters.