WORLD
Jailbreak attempt leaves 129 dead
At least 59 others had been wounded and were receiving care
KINSASHA, DR Congo (AFP) — An attempted jailbreak from the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) largest prison has left at least 129 people dead and led to women being raped, the interior minister said Tuesday.
The circumstances around the bid to bust out of the Makala prison in the capital Kinshasa, which holds 10 times the number it is meant to house, in the early hours of Monday remain unclear.
On Monday, witnesses told Agence France-Presse (AFP) they had heard gunfire at around 2 a.m. that lasted for several hours in the area of the prison, a popular and residential neighborhood.
DRC Interior Minister Jacquemain Shabani in a statement released by video on Tuesday announced a provisional death toll of 129 people that included “24 who were shot after warnings.”
At least 59 others had been wounded and were receiving care, he said, adding that many people had been crushed or suffocated and that a number of women had been raped.
The Makala prison has capacity for 1,500 inmates, but it is overcrowded and rights organizations regularly complain about the conditions of detention at the jail.
It holds 14,000 to 15,000 prisoners, according to official statistics.