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At least 129 people were killed and 59 injured during a failed prison break at the central Makala prison in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Interior Minister Shabani Lukoo in a statement confirmed the incident, saying that the prisoners attempted to escape after a fire broke out in the administrative building, including the infirmary.
Lukoo, on Tuesday, reported significant material damage and a provisional death toll of 129, including 24 shot by security agencies after warnings were ignored.
While announcing a meeting with defence and security services, he disclosed that normalcy had been restored at the facility.
Justice Minister, Constant Mutamba, condemned the attack as a “premeditated act of sabotage” aimed at undermining efforts to improve prison conditions.
He vowed to identify and punish those responsible, saying, “Investigations are underway, they will receive a stern response.”
Mutamba also announced a ban on inmate transfers and plans to build a new prison to address overcrowding.
Makala Prison, one of the largest correctional facilities in the DRC, was built for 1,500 prisoners but currently holds between 14,000 and 15,000 detainees, mostly people awaiting trial.
The prison has recorded previous jailbreaks, including in 2017, when over 4,000 prisoners escaped after an attack by armed men.
It was learnt that authorities have been working to reduce overcrowding in prisons by releasing dozens of inmates in recent months.
