The prison is notoriously overcrowded and prone to violence.
A failed jailbreak at Congo’s largest prison in the capital, Kinshasa, has resulted in the deaths of at least 129 people, most of whom died in a stampede, authorities reported on Tuesday.
The Congolese Interior Minister, Jacquemin Shabani, said on the social platform X that during the early hours of Monday, 24 inmates were shot dead by « warning » gunfire as they attempted to flee from the severely overcrowded Makala Central Prison.
The prison, which houses more than 12,000 inmates despite a capacity for just 1,500, is a notorious facility where most detainees are awaiting trial, according to Amnesty International.
Shabani also noted that 59 injured individuals were receiving medical care.
The incident included reports of sexual violence, and part of the prison had been set on fire.
