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9,000 soldiers sent to Rio de Janeiro ahead of potential police strike

Xinhua, February 15, 2017 Adjust font size:

Around 9,000 soldiers from the Brazilian army were deployed to Rio de Janeiro Tuesday ahead of a potential police strike, the Ministry of Defence announced.

Minister of Defence Raul Jungmann told a press conference that the soldiers will patrol Rio de Janeiro and the nearby cities of Niteroi and Sao Goncalo until Feb. 22, although their deployment could be extended until after Carnival.

On Tuesday afternoon, their presence could be seen in the tour areas of Copacabana and Ipanema, as well as along the main highways in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's second-largest city.

This deployment comes after Rio state Governor Luiz Fernando Pezao appealed to President Michel Temer to reinforce security, as a number of military police battalions stayed in their barracks in protest against the freezing of their salaries and against their labor conditions.

In a statement, Temer said the armed forces are "ready to re-establish public order" in case of more strikes and described the situation in Espirito Santo as an "insurgency" by military police. Endi