Prison Riot

January 24, 2011 (AFP) – Sri Lankan prison guards opened fire Monday to halt a riot by prisoners protesting against poor conditions, killing at least one inmate and wounding another 20, an official said.

Rounds of ammunition were fired as prisoners lit fires at the prison in the town of Anuradhapura, a prison official in the area told AFP by telephone.

Hospital sources said 21 prisoners were admitted with gunshot injuries and one of them died of his wounds. The prisoners were protesting against conditions in the overcrowded facility.