Suspected jihadists storm Nigeria prison, freeing hundreds
- Islamic State claimed responsibility for a raid on a Nigerian prison in the capital Abuja
- Official said about 100 inmates were still on the run, nearly 600 had been recaptured
Suspected jihadists using guns and explosives blasted their way into a prison near Nigeria’s capital, freeing dozens of their jailed comrades and hundreds of other inmates, the government said on Wednesday.
While the government blamed Boko Haram fighters, a catch-all term used sometimes by officials referring to jihadists, Islamic State claimed responsibility for the operation in a statement.
Tuesday night’s brazen attack on the outskirts of Abuja came just hours after an ambush on a presidential security convoy in the northwest, in a startling illustration of Nigeria’s security challenges.
Residents reported a series of loud explosions and gunfire late Tuesday around the Kuje medium-security prison just 40km (25 miles) away from the capital and the Aso Rock presidential villa.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday briefly visited the prison, where the burnt-out wreckage of a bus and cars marked the scene of the attack, and yellow police tape was stretched across a destroyed section of the prison perimeter.
“I am disappointed with the intelligence system. How can terrorists organise, have weapons, attack a security installation and get away with it?” Buhari said in a statement after the visit.
