Sri Lanka prison riot kills 26, with more than 100 others wounded
Clashes at a Sri Lankan jail have killed 26 people, including seven guards, and wounded more than 100 in the country’s deadliest prison riot in years, officials said.
Victims with cuts and gunshot injuries were rushed to Negombo hospital, north of the capital Colombo after overnight fighting between prisoners from two drug gangs, police said on Monday.
Hospital director Pushpa Gamlath said there were 23 bodies at the state-run facility, as well as more than 100 wounded prisoners and guards from Negombo Prison.
“There are some victims with gunshot injuries, some with cuts and severe bruises,” Gamlath told Agence France-Presse by telephone. “We transferred 18 of the more seriously wounded to the Colombo National hospital.”
Justice minister Harshana Nanayakkara later said three more people had died, raising the toll to 26. He expressed “profound shock and grief”, and said authorities were working to separate the rival gangs in the prison.
“Whether they were inmates, or associated with the underworld, is not relevant to us at this moment,” Nanayakkara told reporters.
“Human beings have died, and there is a deep shock regarding that. This is something that should never have occurred.”
He said fighting began on Sunday evening at the prison, which houses several thousand detainees. As reports of the fighting spread, female inmates in an adjoining section climbed onto a roof and demanded their release. Police said part of the roof collapsed, injuring some of the women.
The government announced it was setting up a three-member team headed by a retired supreme court justice to investigate the riot.
Prison spokesperson Chaminda Gajanayake said no foreign prisoners were affected by the riots, in possible reference to a 22-year-old British woman who has been held at Negombo since her arrest in May last year at the international airport with 46kg of kush, a highly potent form of cannabis.
Large crowds of relatives of prisoners gathered outside Negombo on Monday as the air force deployed drones and a helicopter to monitor the area. Local residents said they heard gunshots and it was reported that the prisoners had grabbed several guns from guards earlier in the day.
Seven guards were killed when they tried to break up the rioting on Monday, a police official told AFP. “The situation got out of hand this morning,” he said.
In December 2020, rioting at another prison in Sri Lanka killed 11 prisoners and wounded 117 during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading the government to release hundreds of prisoners from overcrowded jails.
Official data showed that prisons across Sri Lanka held 41,250 prisoners as of Sunday, about four times their capacity.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
Overnight clashes between inmates at Negombo Prison, north of Colombo, resulted in 26 deaths and over 100 injuries. The fighting began Sunday evening between prisoners from two drug gangs. Among the deceased were seven guards who intervened during the violence. Wounded individuals with gunshot injuries and lacerations were treated at Negombo and Colombo National hospitals. Female inmates in an adjoining section climbed onto a roof and were injured when part of it collapsed. Prison authorities say no foreign detainees were affected. The government has established an investigative commission headed by a retired Supreme Court justice. Sri Lanka's prisons currently hold approximately 41,250 detainees—roughly four times their designed capacity. This is the country's deadliest prison riot in recent years.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
Clashes at a Sri Lankan jail have killed 26 people, including seven guards, and wounded more than 100 in the country’s deadliest prison riot in years, officials said.
Victims with cuts and gunshot injuries were rushed to Negombo hospital, north of the capital Colombo after overnight fighting between prisoners from two drug gangs, police said on Monday.
Hospital director Pushpa Gamlath said there were 23 bodies at the state-run facility, as well as more than 100 wounded prisoners and guards from Negombo Prison.
“There are some victims with gunshot injuries, some with cuts and severe bruises,” Gamlath told Agence France-Presse by telephone. “We transferred 18 of the more seriously wounded to the Colombo National hospital.”
Justice minister Harshana Nanayakkara later said three more people had died, raising the toll to 26. He expressed “profound shock and grief”, and said authorities were working to separate the rival gangs in the prison.
“Whether they were inmates, or associated with the underworld, is not relevant to us at this moment,” Nanayakkara told reporters.
“Human beings have died, and there is a deep shock regarding that. This is something that should never have occurred.”
He said fighting began on Sunday evening at the prison, which houses several thousand detainees. As reports of the fighting spread, female inmates in an adjoining section climbed onto a roof and demanded their release. Police said part of the roof collapsed, injuring some of the women.
The government announced it was setting up a three-member team headed by a retired supreme court justice to investigate the riot.
Prison spokesperson Chaminda Gajanayake said no foreign prisoners were affected by the riots, in possible reference to a 22-year-old British woman who has been held at Negombo since her arrest in May last year at the international airport with 46kg of kush, a highly potent form of cannabis.
Large crowds of relatives of prisoners gathered outside Negombo on Monday as the air force deployed drones and a helicopter to monitor the area. Local residents said they heard gunshots and it was reported that the prisoners had grabbed several guns from guards earlier in the day.
Seven guards were killed when they tried to break up the rioting on Monday, a police official told AFP. “The situation got out of hand this morning,” he said.
In December 2020, rioting at another prison in Sri Lanka killed 11 prisoners and wounded 117 during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading the government to release hundreds of prisoners from overcrowded jails.
Official data showed that prisons across Sri Lanka held 41,250 prisoners as of Sunday, about four times their capacity.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
A riot at Negombo Prison killed 26 people, including 7 guards, and wounded more than 100 Fighting broke out on Sunday evening between inmates from rival drug gangs Victims sustained gunshot injuries, cuts, and severe bruises Female prisoners climbed onto a roof and part of it collapsed, injuring some women Seven guards were killed when attempting to break up the rioting Sri Lankan prisons hold 41,250 inmates as of Sunday, approximately four times their capacity This is Sri Lanka's deadliest prison riot in years Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara expressed profound shock and grief over the deaths The government established a three-member investigative team, signalling commitment to accountability
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
- A riot at Negombo Prison in Sri Lanka killed 26 people, including 7 guards, and wounded over 100
- Fighting erupted between inmates from rival drug gangs on Sunday evening; female prisoners in an adjacent section were injured when part of a roof collapsed during the unrest
- Sri Lankan prisons operate at roughly 4 times capacity; authorities are investigating and have announced measures to separate rival gangs