At least 18 inmates were killed in a riot in Honduras' largest prison, according to reports reaching here from the country's capital Tegucigalpa.

Knives and machetes were used during the riot and several inmates were even beheaded, said a prison spokesman. An investigation into the causes of the riot is still underway, he said.

The riot, which began late on Friday at the National Penitentiary north of Tegucigalpa, was the second such incident in a Honduran prison in a week.

Last Saturday, nine prisoners were killed in a riot at a jail in the northern city of San Pedro Sula, which forced the prison authorities to shift dozens of inmates to other prisons this week to avoid further violence.

(Xinhua News Agency May 4, 2008)