At least 20 people, including a police officer, have died in a shootout with drug traffickers in Rio de Janeiro, according to local media.

The O Globo newspaper said two passengers on a metro train were also wounded in the shooting in Jacarezinho, a shanty town in northern Rio, Brazil.

The shootings, it said, happened during a police operation.

Civil Police in the city confirmed the death of one of their officers.

In a statement on its Facebook page, it said it was “with extreme regret”, that police inspector Andre Leonardo de Mello had been killed “during the operation to combat organised crime in the community of Jacarezinho”.

And it paid tribute to the officer, saying “he honoured the profession he loved and will be missed”.

It continued: “The action was based on concrete intelligence and investigation information.

“On occasion, criminals reacted strongly. Not just to run away but to kill.

“Unfortunately, the war scenario imposed by these gangs demonstrates the importance of operations so that criminal organisations do not strengthen themselves.”

An O Globo tweet said witnesses reported “fear and violence” in the neighbourhood around the shooting.

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