Sri Lanka Prison Riot Leaves 23 Dead in Negombo Jail

A deadly sri lanka prison riot has shaken the coastal town of Negombo, leaving 23 people dead and more than 100 others hurt. The clash broke out between two rival drug gangs housed inside the jail, making it the worst prison unrest the country has seen in over five years.

The fighting started on Sunday evening and carried on through the night. Officials say the violence spread quickly across different sections of the crowded facility, which normally holds several thousand inmates.

Doctors at the nearby Negombo hospital treated dozens of wounded people through the night. Hospital director Pushpa Gamlath said many patients arrived with gunshot wounds, while others had deep cuts and heavy bruising.

Among the dead were four prison guards. Police said the officers were trying to calm the fighting when they lost their lives. One officer told reporters that things spun out of control by early morning.

The unrest also spread to a nearby women’s section of the prison. Some female inmates climbed onto the roof and called for their release once word of the fighting reached them. Part of the roof gave way during this, hurting a few of the women.

Police sent in special commando units on Monday, though they were kept outside rather than sent into the prison itself. Meanwhile, the air force used drones and a helicopter to keep watch over the site from above.

Outside the prison walls, worried family members of inmates gathered in large numbers, hoping for news. Nearby residents said they could clearly hear gunfire coming from inside.

This is not the first time Sri Lankan prisons have seen deadly unrest. Back in December 2020, a riot at a different jail killed 11 inmates and injured 117 more, during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic. That event pushed the government to release hundreds of prisoners from badly overcrowded facilities.

The overcrowding problem still hasn’t gone away. As of Sunday, Sri Lanka’s prisons held around 41,250 inmates in total, roughly four times more than they were built to hold.