Brazil military ends Amazon operation
Oct 31, 2012, 8:03 PM
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) – Brazil’s military says it confiscated four tons of drugs, five dozen vehicles and 200 boats used by drug traffickers in the jungle region along borders with Bolivia and Peru.
That’s the result from a three-week military operation involving 7,500 troops patrolling along 2,600 miles (4,200 kilometers) where officials say there is heavy trafficking of cocaine and guns.
It was the sixth such operation by the Brazilian military this year. The government has said it wants to exert more control over its long land borders.
Officials in far-away cities like Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro blame the drugs and arms that flow over those borders for igniting the high levels of violence they face.
The military patrols that ended Wednesday also brought medical care to residents in the remote area.
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