A wave of violence on the border between Brazil and Paraguay has imposed a routine of fear and caused authorities in both countries to move to try to combat the action of drug trafficking in the region.
Alerts grew last week when a massacre on Saturday (10) left four people dead in Pedro Juan Caballero, a Paraguayan border town, including two Brazilian medical students. On the other side of the border, a city councilor from Ponta Porã (MS) was killed while riding a bicycle.
The murders are added to the deaths of police officers and attacks on politicians, mostly on the Paraguayan side. However, the action of Brazilian factions in the region usually permeates, directly or indirectly, a good part of these actions in the region.
The cases are still being investigated and the Paraguayan and Brazilian police have signed an agreement for joint operations, roadblocks and information sharing in order to curb criminal activities on both sides of the border.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon