Afghanistan prison riot spreads

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Afghanistan prison riot spreads

Posted: 2/26/2006 4:58:36 AM EDT

Afghanistan prison riot spreads

An uprising at Afghanistan's main high-security jail has spread to a second block, and now involves nearly 2,000 prisoners, the BBC has learned.
Inmates took control of a wing of the jail, Kabul's Pul-e-Charkhi, overnight.

Sources have told the BBC seven people have been killed, although top Afghan officials have denied any deaths.

The violence apparently began as an escape attempt in a section holding Taleban and al-Qaeda militants as well as ordinary criminals.

There has been frequent gunfire at the scene.

At least 20 police cars and two ambulances have arrived at the jail, where hundreds of prisoners are barricaded inside a women's wing, the BBC's Bilal Sarwary reports from outside the prison.

Afghan army rapid-reaction troops had arrived on the scene earlier, reinforcing Interior Ministry security forces.

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Trouble apparently started at about 2200 (1730 GMT) on Saturday in Block 2 - which houses 1,300 inmates - after a change in prison uniform rules.

By Sunday evening local time, up to 750 inmates jailed for ordinary criminal offences in another block had begun burning furniture in support of the Block 2 prisoners.

Some have tried to escape by climbing the walls.

A senior official told the BBC that two female prison guards had been taken hostage by prisoners.

'Militant-inspired'

Police have sealed off the affected wing and no-one has escaped, jail officials say.

An official told the BBC that Taleban and al-Qaeda elements were responsible for the violence.

Pul-e-Charkhi is a huge prison complex built in the 1970s

"It's the work of al-Qaeda and Taleban. By making things violent, they want to escape the prison. So far no-one has succeeded doing this," Gen Salam Bakhshi, director of Afghan prisons, told the BBC.

Pul-e-Charkhi is a huge prison complex built in the 1970s on the outskirts of the capital.

Correspondents say the vast and run-down jail is notorious for the disappearance and torture of thousands of Afghans during the communist era.

Last month, seven Taleban suspects escaped from the jail, with prison guards accused by officials of helping the break-out.

Four men described as "dangerous militants" escaped from US custody at the Bagram air base near Kabul last year.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4751572.stm

Posted: 2/26/2006 5:00:25 AM EDT

[#1]

Ah fuck em.

Shoot em all.

Posted: 2/26/2006 5:04:15 AM EDT

[#2]

Best excuse for a MOAB I've ever seen.

Posted: 3/1/2006 3:07:03 AM EDT

[#3]

Vito, have you seen this website that is originating from within the prison?

Incredible.............."SuperPatriot website originating from within the prison - by a reporter convicted along with rogue ex-SF guys of running private prison

Jack Idema (former Green Beret and incarcerated in the afghan prison)

this is some crazy sh*t !!!

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:21:15 AM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:
Vito, have you seen this website that is originating from within the prison?

Incredible.............."SuperPatriot website originating from within the prison - by a reporter convicted along with rogue ex-SF guys of running private prison

this is some crazy sh*t !!!

Keith Idema is quite possibly the biggest liar walking the face of the earth… a thief, a felon, and 100% con man.

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:22:21 AM EDT

[#5]

www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/03/01/afghanistan.prison.ap/index.html

Kabul jail riot ends with six dead

Wednesday, March 1, 2006; Posted: 12:04 p.m. EST (17:04 GMT)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Authorities have regained control of Afghanistan's most notorious prison after four days of rioting allegedly sparked by al Qaeda and Taliban convicts, a senior official has said. One more body was found inside the prison, raising the number of inmates reported killed in the revolt to six.

Deputy justice minister Mohammed Qasim Hashimzai said more than 1,300 unruly inmates at Policharki prison, including the 350 Taliban and al Qaeda loyalists, were transferred to another block of the prison under official guard. As they cleared out, one more prisoner was found dead, he said.

At least 40 prisoners were reported injured in the revolt, officials said.

"God help us, now everything is safe and secure," Hashimzai told reporters.

Hashimzai said American inmate Edward Caraballo, who had earlier called media to say other prisoners had threatened to cut his head off, was safe.

Afghan soldiers escorted reporters to look inside the prison on the outskirts of the Afghan capital.

Block Two, where the rioting by hundreds of inmates broke out late Saturday, was dark and empty, but flashlights showed its walls scarred with bullet holes inside and out. There was a burnt smell from where prisoners had set fire to bedding and furniture.

Women inmates could be seen looking out of small cell windows from a separate, nearby block. There are about 70 women inmates and another 70 children living with them in the prison. Gen. Mahboob Ullah Amiri, commander of a rapid reaction force at the prison, said none of the women prisoners had been hurt, although their section of the jail had been infiltrated by rioters.

He said the riot had been led by a former senior Taliban commander, Mullah Mujahed. About 100 Taliban and al Qaeda inmates considered dangerous were now in separate rooms from other prisoners and under tight security, he added.

Hundreds of inmates began rioting late Saturday, reportedly after refusing new prison uniforms that were being introduced after some Taliban inmates escaped last month by disguising themselves as visitors. (Full story)

Security forces had surrounded the prison to prevent escapes as government officials tried to negotiate with the rebellious inmates.

There was a fresh outbreak of violence on Tuesday, when police opened fire on inmates trying to push down a gate, killing one and injuring three.

But early Wednesday, authorities reported progress in resolving the standoff, saying hundreds of prisoners were in the process of being transferred from Block Two, where the rioting began. Hashimzai said the transfers were complete by early evening.

On Tuesday, about 1,000 prisoners had made clear they wanted to surrender, leaving only a hard core of al Qaeda and Taliban who wanted to stick it out. But they too had eventually relented and were now under tight security, Hashimzai said.

It was not clear whether the government had made any concessions to the inmates, who had been complaining of poor prison conditions and unfair convictions.
Notorious prison

Earlier Wednesday, Caraballo, one of three Americans detained at the prison, said that rioting inmates were holding him in his cell and had threatened Tuesday to cut off his head. But they later backed away from the threat, he said.

"Hopefully the situation will quiet down so I can walk out of here ... I just want to get out of here," he said.

Caraballo had said he was staying with hundreds of other prisoners and they were moving around freely inside, armed with "sticks, pipes, chains, knives."

Officials, however, said the situation in Block One, where Caraballo was detained, was calm and that it had not been necessary to transfer prisoners from that part of the prison.

Caraballo, from New York, is serving a two-year sentence after he was arrested in July 2004 along with Jonathan Idema and Brent Bennett. They were accused of running a private jail in Kabul as part of a freelance hunt for terrorists.

Caraballo claims he is a journalist and had believed he was chronicling a legitimate counterterror operation.

Hashimzai criticized Caraballo for speaking to media and said authorities had confiscated his mobile phone and laptop computer -- and those held by other prisoners in Policharki.

Policharki Prison was built in the 1970s and is notorious for harsh and crowded conditions.

Some of the prison blocks are being renovated ahead of the expected arrival of some 110 Afghan terror suspects later this year from the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but there has been little work on the rest of the facility.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:28:41 AM EDT

[#6]

Nothing a few cluster bombs wouldn't solve.

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:30:02 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Vito, have you seen this website that is originating from within the prison?

Incredible.............."SuperPatriot website originating from within the prison - by a reporter convicted along with rogue ex-SF guys of running private prison

this is some crazy sh*t !!!

Keith Idema is quite possibly the biggest liar walking the face of the earth… a thief, a felon, and 100% con man.

I wouldn't disagree with what you said, but he is also a true patriot.

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:36:23 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Vito, have you seen this website that is originating from within the prison?

Incredible.............."SuperPatriot website originating from within the prison - by a reporter convicted along with rogue ex-SF guys of running private prison

this is some crazy sh*t !!!

Keith Idema is quite possibly the biggest liar walking the face of the earth… a thief, a felon, and 100% con man.
I wouldn't disagree with what you said, but he is also a true patriot.

No he no Patriot... he is a liar and a con-man looking for his next mark.

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:40:57 AM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:
Nothing a ~~few~~ bunch of ~~cluster bombs~~ napalm wouldn't solve.

Posted: 3/1/2006 9:59:00 AM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Nothing a ~~few~~ bunch of ~~cluster bombs~~ napalm wouldn't solve.

Use both!

Posted: 3/1/2006 3:04:41 PM EDT

[#11]

WTF is Idema doing creating a private jail?

I mean- what was he trying to accomplish?

Was he trying to cash in on bounties placed on Taliban scalps? Or just working as a PSD trooper?

IIRC, he was convicted of beating the shit out of captured Taliban/al Qaeda militants.

Nothing wrong with that part. He must have crossed some other lines.

Posted: 3/1/2006 3:19:17 PM EDT

[#12]

There has been talk that Idema's claims of exploits as a Green Beanie were exaggerated.

Posted: 3/1/2006 3:25:06 PM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
There has been talk that Idema's claims of exploits as a Green Beanie were exaggerated.

The word floating around from people that know him is that he did the Q-Course and nothing else. No team time, no other schools, nothing.

He has been trading on his false reputation and ripping people off since the early 80's.

Posted: 3/2/2006 4:38:33 PM EDT

[#14]

Quoted:
Quoted:
There has been talk that Idema's claims of exploits as a Green Beanie were exaggerated.
The word floating around from people that know him is that he did the Q-Course and nothing else. No team time, no other schools, nothing.

He has been trading on his false reputation and ripping people off since the early 80's.

I heard he was support. Rigger or some such.

But...I ain't no ninja.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Afghanistan prison riot spreads

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