Venezuelan prisoners fight to control jail, 16 dead

CARACAS, Jan 2 (Reuters) At least 16 prisoners died and 13 were wounded when rival gangs fought for control of one of Venezuela's notoriously overcrowded and violent jails, an official said today.

''We have the situation under control now,'' Fanny Marquez, prison-system chief at the Interior Ministry, told state television, saying the clash at Uribana prison in the western state of Lara had broken out at dawn yesterday.

Riots, murders and clan warfare are common in Venezuela's prisons where many inmates wait for months before getting to court. The government has pledged to reform jails.

REUTERS KR HT0007