Associated Press
KINGSTON, Jamaica — More than 30 attackers opened fire with assault rifles on a capital-area neighborhood Thursday, killing seven people in an apparent resurgence of gang violence, police said.
Four of the seven victims were from one family, including a 7-year-old girl and her 13-year-old sister.
Gunmen wearing military or police uniforms entered the area around 1 a.m. and sprayed two houses with bullets. Police said they also shot at cars, street lights and even goats, then fled before police arrived.
"Everyone thought they were officers and soldiers, but when they started to shoot without any warning or mercy, that’s how we found out that they were gunmen," said a resident who would only give his name as John.
Of the five adult victims, three were women and two were men. At least three other people were injured when they were grazed by bullets. The two houses were destroyed by fire.
Police said the killings were likely retaliation for the slaying of a 32-year-old gang member on New Year’s Day, police Cpl. Suzette Wright said.
Kingston’s gangs are divided among the political loyalties in their neighborhoods. In the 1970s and ’80s, Jamaican gangs were used by political parties to rustle up votes.
Police and soldiers have moved into the region to clamp down on violence during the past few months.
The Caribbean country of 2.6 million people had a record 1,140 homicides in 2001, an increase of 28 percent over 2000.
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