Peru At least 13 people were killed in chaos when police raided nightclubs in violation of a ban on pandemic gatherings in the capital, Lima.

The Peruvian Ministry of the Interior said the incident happened on August 22 when the Thomas Restobar nightclub in the Los Olivos district, the capital, Lima, was found to have a birthday party with about 120 people in attendance and violated preventive measures.

"The police checked and did not use any weapons or tear gas. The party members tried to escape by single exit, trampled on each other and got stuck in the stairs," the Ministry of the Interior announced.

The incident killed at least 13 people, 6 injured, including 3 policemen.

"This should not have happened. We are facing a pandemic and a health emergency. I call for the highest penalty for nightclub owners," said Peruvian Women's Minister Rosario Sasieta.

213 countries and regions have registered Covid-19 since the outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.

Peru, a country of 33 million people, reports more than 500,000 cases of nCoV infections and more than 27,000 deaths.