Rio knife attacks claim more victims: police

Rio knife attacks claim more victims: police

RIO DE JANEIRO - Two more people were injured Saturday in knife attacks in Rio, raising to 13 the number of stabbing victims in as many day in the city that hosts the 2016 Olympic Games.

Police said an 18-year-old student was stabbed in the arm during a robbery attempt on a suburban train, and a 19-year-old was stabbed in the chest and neck outside a discotheque, police said.

The rash of attacks has had residents of this seaside city on edge since a 52-year-old doctor was stabbed to death while riding his bicycle May 19 around the Rio Lagoon near the city's famed Ipanema beach.

His death sparked protests against the high rate of violent crime in Rio.

The city has had about 50,000 murders since 2007, mostly carried out with guns, according to official statistics.

Since 2008, the government has attempted to tamp down violent crime by occupying some of the city's biggest slums with troops and police.

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