Two police officers and five prisoners died in a prison riot Monday in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum. Another 80 people were injured, 57 of them police and 23 prisoners, according to reports quoting Voice of America. Sudan's Interior Ministry said the unrest began as a hunger strike Saturday but degenerated into a riot.
The official statement added that the prisoners vandalized the prison and set it on fire before anti-riot police were called in. The police used batons and tear gas to quell the protest, adding that immediate counter-fire by prisoners killed the two police officers.
A ministry spokesman said calm was restored after five hours of clashes. It is unclear how the prisoners gained access to weapons in the maximum-security prison, said the report. (Albawaba.com)
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