A violent clash between rival drug gangs inside Sri Lanka's overcrowded Negombo Prison left at least 23 people dead, including six prison guards, and injured more than 100 others, officials have said on Monday, marking the country's deadliest prison riot in years.
Victims with gunshot wounds, cuts and severe bruises were rushed to Negombo Hospital, just north of Colombo, after fighting erupted on Sunday evening and escalated into Monday morning.
Hospital director Pushpa Gamlath said 23 bodies had been taken to the state-run hospital, while more than 100 injured inmates and prison staff were treated. Eighteen of the most seriously wounded were transferred to Colombo National Hospital.
Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara expressed "profound shock and grief," saying authorities were working to separate rival gangs inside the prison.
"Whether they were inmates, or associated with the underworld, is not relevant to us at this moment," he told reporters. "Human beings have died, and there is a deep shock regarding that. This is something that should never have occurred."
Authorities struggle to regain control
The unrest spread beyond the main prison blocks as women inmates in an adjoining section climbed onto a roof demanding their release after news of the violence broke. Police said part of the roof later collapsed, injuring several women.
Prison spokesman Chaminda Gajanayake said no foreign prisoners were caught up in the violence.
The prison, however, is holding a 22-year-old British woman arrested in May last year at Sri Lanka's main international airport with 46 kilograms (101 pounds) of kush, a highly potent form of cannabis.
On Monday morning, some inmates attempted to storm the prison's main gate while others clashed with armed guards during breakfast after seizing several firearms earlier in the day.
"They made a dash to the main gate, but we were able to hold them back," Gajanayake said.
Police and commandos secured the prison perimeter while inmates were transferred by bus to other correctional facilities.
The Sri Lankan Air Force deployed drones and a helicopter to monitor the area as large crowds of worried relatives gathered outside the prison.
A police official said six guards were killed while trying to stop the violence.
"The situation got out of hand this morning," the official said.
Overcrowding under renewed scrutiny
The riot has once again highlighted chronic overcrowding in Sri Lanka's prison system.
Official figures show the country's prisons held 41,250 inmates as of Sunday—around four times their intended capacity.
The last major prison riot occurred in December 2020, when unrest during the Covid-19 pandemic left 11 inmates dead and 117 injured, prompting authorities to release hundreds of prisoners to ease overcrowding.
