Hundreds of Taliban in tunnel jail escape

ChaoticFate.com by qew
INFORMATION REVOLUTION

Afghan government officials confirm that some 540 Taliban members have escaped from Kandahar prison. Last Modified: 25 Apr 2011 03:06 Email Print Share Send Feedback

In June 2008, Taliban fighters attacked the same facility in southern Afghanistan freeing nearly 1,150 prisoners [AP] Some 540 Taliban officers and commanders have escaped from Kandahar prison via a 350 metre-long tunnel, Afghan government officials have confirmed to Al Jazeera. A Taliban official on Monday also confirmed the overnight escape, boasting that the prison break had been "very well-planned" and that it was five months in the making, Al Jazeera's Qais Azimy, reporting from Kabul, said. "They started getting out of the prison at 11:00pm (1830 GMT) last night and by early morning today, 541 prisoners escaped the prison," Yousuf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, said. "They all have made it safe to our centres and there was no fighting." Ahmadi said that 106 were Taliban commanders while the rest were foot soldiers. Kandahar police said they have re-captured eight commanders so far. The prison in Kandahar typically holds drug dealers as well as Taliban commanders captured by NATO forces, our correspondent said. If the officials have the correct number for those who have escaped - 540 Taliban commanders and senior officers on the run - then this break will constitute a "big success" for the Taliban. It is also sure to "have a dramatic effect on the fight against the Taliban in the region," said Azimy. Security concerns There have been previous escapes from this prison. In June 2008, Taliban fighters attacked the facility in southern Afghanistan, blasting through its entrance and engaging in a gun battle with police. Nearly all of the estimated 1,150 prisoners, including some 400 Taliban, escaped, according to Afghan officials. A Taliban spokesperson said that two suicide bombers blew themselves up near the entrance of the gate to the prison before 30 Taliban fighters attacked and killed 16 policemen. Kandahar prison was the scene of a mass hunger strike by hundreds of inmates in May, 2008 during which 47 of the prisoners sewed their lips shut after complaining they had been tortured and denied fair trials. Kandahar is seen as the birthplace of the Taliban movement and the city and surrounding area is scene of some of the worst fighting in Afghanistan.

Source: Al Jazeera