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

<p>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.</p>.<p>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.</p>.Sri Lanka prison clash: Two more jail officials succumb to injuries; death toll 32.<p>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.</p>.<p>"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.</p>.<p>The injured are receiving treatment at Ratnapura Hospital.</p>.<p>Hours before the incident, a similar tense unrest took place at Colombo's Magazine Prison.</p>.<p>At around 10:00 pm on Thursday, about 40 inmates rioted after breaking through a section, Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala told parliament.</p>.<p>One inmate was killed in the violence while 10 others were injured.</p>.<p>According to prison officials, both prison riots have been brought under control with the deployment of troops.</p>.<p>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.</p>.<p>He added that police and prison officials are working to control the situation.</p>.<p>At parliament, Wijepala said that suspicions have arisen over whether the escalating violence reported at several prisons was linked to an organised plot.</p>.<p>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.</p>.<p>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.</p>.<p>The recent incidents follow similar unrest at the Negombo prison on July 5 and 6, which killed 33.</p>.<p>On August 1, similar rioting took place at Mahara prison, killing one inmate.</p>.<p>Rights groups blame overcrowding in prisons as the primary reason for frequent skirmishes. </p>