Armed fighters free over 1,300 prisoners from DR Congo jail

Armed fighters freed more than 1,300 prisoners from a jail in Beni in east Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in a coordinated attack that took place in the early hours of Tuesday.
Only about 100 remained following the simultaneous assault on the Kangbayi central prison and on the military camp that provides security to it, said the town’s mayor Modeste Bakwanamaha, who blamed a rebel group operating in the area for the attack.
He said that 20 of the escaped prisoners had already returned.
“Unfortunately, the attackers, who came in large numbers, managed to break the door with electrical equipment,” Bakwanamaha told Reuters news agency by phone.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but Bakwanamaha said: “We believe that it was the ADF who did this.”
Two inmates were shot dead during the raid, which started at about 4.30 am local time (0230 GMT), police said on Twitter.