The victims were killed by street gangs, it is believed (Pictures: AP/Reuters/Twitter/@HXNews)

Some 41 women were burnt, stabbed or shot to death in a gang riot which broke out at a prison in Honduras.

The horrific violence took place on Tuesday, in the town of Tamara, on the outskirts of the Central American country’s capital Tegucigalpa.

President Xiomara Castro said the riot at the at the Centro Femenino de Adaptacion Social was planned by ‘maras’ – a type of street gang – with guards’ ‘knowledge and acquiescence’.

Attackers ‘removed’ them from the prison at 8am and then began massacring women and starting fires, the assistant commissioner for the nation’s prison system Sandra Rodriguez Vargas said.

The majority of victims (26) died because of the fire while others were killed with guns or knives. A group of seven are still receiving medical treatment.

None of the guards appeared to be hurt and there are no reports of any of them needing hospital treatment.

Weapons including guns, machetes and other types of blades were found inside the prison after the riot.

Relatives outside the Centro Femenino de Adaptacion Social women’s prison (Picture: Reuters)