MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Rio Governor asks for 4.000 Special Forces.

After five full days of bloody fighting between drug gangs and police forces the governor of the Brazilian state of Rio do Janeiro Rosinha Matheus officially requested 4.000 Special Forces from the federal government to help combat organized crime in the city's shanty towns, favelas.

In the last few days armed fighting in the favela of Rocinha, considered the largest of South America and surrounded by the most posh neighbourhoods of Rio, Tijuna, Leblon and Ipanema, has left at least ten dead and dozens wounded.

An estimated hard core drug gang "soldiers" are involved in a door to door combat with 1,500 police forces.

"I'm requesting cooperation, not intervention", said Governor Matheus who blamed the violence in Rio on the federal government and the city's Mayor Cesar Maia. "It was the federal government that withdrew the Army arguing that fighting drug gangs was not a military duty", said Ms. Matheus adding that the federal government still has to transfer the 14 million US dollars specifically earmarked for fighting drug gangs. "The weapons of the delinquents are not manufactured in Rio but smuggled in the country through the borders that are a federal responsibility" and "the favelas expansion is a municipal responsibility", emphasized Rio's governor.

However Ms. Matheus downplayed the impact of the Rocinha fighting saying it was "an isolated incident", but blasted the press for making a "carnival" out of the actions. Following presidential orders, the Brazilian Armed Forces will be involved in logistics, air surveillance from helicopters and patrolling areas adjacent to the most violent and notorious favelas.

Rio do Janeiro's state Security Secretary Anthony Garotinho indicated that the Army's support will be temporary, "while we continue to select and train our own special forces to combat organized crime".

But Mr. Garotinho insisted that the growing defiance of organized crime and drug dealers "is originated in the quantity and quality of restricted weapons that they possess", which are used to intimidate the population of the favelas.