3 inmates killed, over 20 injured in fresh prison clashes in Sri Lanka

Colombo: Three inmates were killed and 23 others injured in separate clashes at two prisons in Sri Lanka over the past 24 hours, officials said on Friday.

The clashes were the latest in a series of incidents of prison unrest in the island nation over the past month, which the public security minister has said are suspected to be part of an organised plot.

At the Kuruwita prison, 60 kms southeast of Colombo, two inmates were killed and 13 others injured on Friday after a violent situation, officials said.


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"The immediate trigger for the unrest appears to have been the detection of a package containing narcotics and the subsequent arrest. It is evident that this was a response to the government's anti-narcotics drive," Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara told reporters.

The injured are receiving treatment at Ratnapura Hospital.

Hours before the incident, a similar tense unrest took place at Colombo's Magazine Prison.

At around 10:00 pm on Thursday, about 40 inmates rioted after breaking through a section, Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala told parliament.

One inmate was killed in the violence while 10 others were injured.

According to prison officials, both prison riots have been brought under control with the deployment of troops.

Earlier on Friday, around 30 inmates at the Pallansena Prison climbed onto the roof of a ward and staged a protest following the morning breakfast, Minister Wijepala said.

He added that police and prison officials are working to control the situation.

At parliament, Wijepala said that suspicions have arisen over whether the escalating violence reported at several prisons was linked to an organised plot.

He said the government aims to suppress the unrest while safeguarding the lives of all inmates and officers, and added that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has called for a meeting of all stakeholders involved in prisons later in the day.

Earlier this week, Justice Minister Nanayakkara also told parliament that the government was aware of more riots at prisons and suspected them to be organised acts of sabotage.

The recent incidents follow similar unrest at the Negombo prison on July 5 and 6, which killed 33.

On August 1, similar rioting took place at Mahara prison, killing one inmate.

Rights groups blame overcrowding in prisons as the primary reason for frequent skirmishes.