Prison escape in Mozambique: Post-election violence [Video]

MAPUTO, Mozambique –

At least 6,000 inmates escaped from a high-security prison in Mozambique’s capital on Christmas Day after a rebellion, the country’s police chief said, as widespread post-election riots and violence continue to engulf the country.

Thirty-three prisoners died and 15 others were injured during a confrontation with the security forces, the police chief Bernardino Rafael added.

The prisoners fled during violent protests, that have seen police cars, stations and general public infrastructure destroyed after the country’s Constitutional Council confirmed the ruling Frelimo party as the winner of the Oct.9 elections.

The escape from the Maputo Central Prison, located 14 km southwest of the capital, started around midday Wednesday after “agitation” by a “group of subversive protesters” nearby, Rafael said, adding that prisoners at the facility snatched weapons from prison warders and started freeing other detainees.

“A curious fact is that in that prison we had 29 convicted terrorists, who they released. …