129 prisoners from Congo trying to escape jail died

Kinshasa: At least 129 people trying to escape from Congo’s main jail located in the middle of the African continent died. Most of these deaths are being reported due to stampede. Congo’s Home Minister Jacquemin Shabani said on the social media platform ‘X’ that 24 prisoners trying to escape from Makala jail in Kinshasa were shot after warning them in the early hours of Monday. After this, a stampede situation arose in the jail. Hundreds of people fell on the ground soaked in blood. According to the information, 129 prisoners have died. The number may also increase.

According to the report, there are more than 12,000 prisoners in Makala, Congo’s main jail with a capacity of 1,500 people. Most of these cases are pending in the courts. Incidents of escape from jail have been recorded here earlier as well. Dozens of people were freed in 2017 after attacks by a religious sect. People familiar with the matter said the firing inside the prison began at midnight on Sunday and continued until Monday morning. A senior government official had earlier said only two people were confirmed dead during the incident, however, human rights activists questioned the figure.