Multiple Sri Lankan prisoners dead after protest over COVID-19 response

At least eight Sri Lankan prisoners have been killed and more than 50 injured in clashes with guards amid protests over COVID-19 outbreaks in the country’s jails.

Prisons across the country have reported thousands of coronavirus infections in recent months, Reuters reported on Monday. Inmates have held demonstrations calling for additional COVID-19 testing and quarantine facilities. 

A clash at the Mahara prison, near the city of Colombo, began on Sunday when inmates protested over prisoners who had tested positive for COVID-19 being transported there, according to Reuters. 

At least 59 prisoners were injured as the demonstrations escalated with prison guards. Two guards were critically injured, the Associated Press reported.

Ajith Rohana, a senior police official, confirmed to Reuters that “most of the deaths and injuries appear to be due to gunshots.” 

A majority of the prisoners injured were in critical condition, Shelton Perera, director of the Ragama Hospital where inmates from the Mahara prison were being treated, told the outlet. 

Sri Lanka has reported 23,987 coronavirus cases and 118 deaths, according to an estimate from Johns Hopkins University.