Jamaica PM promises crackdown on rioters

HEAVILY armed police patrolled the Jamaican capital yesterday after at least three people died in an outbreak of violence by suspected supporters of an alleged drug lord who faces extradition to the United States.

The government declared a state of emergency in sections of the capital, Kingston. Prime minister Bruce Golding vowed "strong and decisive action" to restore order. "We must confront this criminal element with determination and unqualified resolve," he said.

The state of emergency covered districts of the capital where gunmen shot up or set fire to five police stations late on Sunday. Security force officials said at least two policemen and one civilian were killed and seven police officers wounded in the attacks, which were accompanied by sporadic reports of looting and carjackings.

The rioters were said to be supporters of Christopher "Dudus" Coke, who faces a judicial request for extradition to the US on cocaine trafficking and gun-running charges.

US prosecutors have described Coke as the leader of the infamous "Shower Posse" that murdered hundreds of people by showering them with bullets during the cocaine wars of the 1980s.

The normally bustling streets of Kingston were mostly deserted yesterday, as the country marked its Labour Day holiday and motorists steered clear of the troublespots.