Prison Officers Open Fire in Sri Lanka COVID-19 Riot

EIGHT prisoners have been killed after prison officers open fire in a COVID-19 linked riot in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka has seen a massive increase in COVID-19 cases after two recent outbreaks. Prisoners have been growing anxious with the lack of testing, and isolation issues with infected people. The prisons are said to generally be overcrowded which has further increased tensions.

As the unrest in the prisons has grown, protests have started. Mahara prison, near Colombo broke into a full riot with prisoners attempting to escape and destroying property throughout the prison. As the riot gained momentum hundreds of additional officers were brought in to help calm and control the situation.

Two officers have been critically injured and after guards opened fire, many prisoners were injured and eight have been killed. Ajith Rohana, a spokesperson for the police said, “The unrest situation turned into a prison riot”, with hundreds of people trying to escape.

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