At least 31 inmates have been found dead in a prison in southern Ecuador. 27 of them were reportedly found hanged.

Four inmates were killed and more than 30 others were injured yesterday in a fight between two rival criminal gangs at the El Oro prison in the city of Machala.

Within hours of the incident, another clash broke out and 27 prisoners were found hanged.

The bodies of the prisoners, whose bodies were found by security forces, were reportedly found on the third floor of the prison.

Protests and riots in Ecuador's prisons have been on the rise, with hundreds of prisoners killed in recent years due to gang violence.

The country's prison administration has said that clashes between gangs have broken out after it was announced that some of the inmates would be transferred to a newly built prison.

Inmates and a prison guard were killed in a clash between criminal gangs at El Oro prison in mid-September.

Families of inmates have called for tighter security at the prison.