FREETOWN, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Twenty people were killed and nearly 2,000 inmates escaped during Sunday's attack on a military barracks, a prison and other locations in Sierra Leone, officials said on Monday.
The West African country was thrown into panic in the early hours when the assailants sent gunfire ringing across the capital Freetown.
Some 1,890 inmates escaped from the Pademba Road central prison after the attackers broke in, according to a situation report that prison officials shared with Reuters on Monday.
[1/2]Sierra Leone's Vice President Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh visits the central Pademba Road prison after unidentified gunmen attacked a military barracks and the prison, following which inmates escaped, in Freetown, Sierra Leone November 27, 2023.
In August 2022, at least 21 civilians and six police officers were killed in anti-government protests.
Persons:
Julius Maada Bio, Issa Bangura, Shek Sulaiman Massaquoi, Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh, Umaru, Umaru Fofana, Anait Miridzhanian, Bate Felix, Edward McAllister, Alison Williams, Mark Potter
Organizations:
Reuters, Sierra Leone Correctional Service, Sierra Leone's, REUTERS, European Union, Thomson
Locations:
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone, Freetown, United States