ROUNDUP: Five prisoners dead, sixteen injured in prison riot
Deutsche Presse-Agentur - September 5, 2003

Pristina, Kosovo - Five prisoners were killed and sixteen hospitalized in a fire caused when prisoners set fire to their mattresses during a demonstration in Kosovo's largest prison, a senior United Nations official in Pristina said Friday.

At least one of the hospitalized prisoners, who were protesting prison conditions, is still in critical condition. A prison official has also been hospitalized for smoke inhalation, Paul Coffey the director of Justice Department of the U.N. mission in Kosovo told reporters.

The incident occurred in one of the five cell blocs of the Dubrava prison, some 70 kilometres west of the capital Pristina, which hosts some 800 prisoners.

Shortly after noon on Thursday a group of prisoners forcibly overcame several unarmed guards inside the building, and barricaded the main entrance.

After the failure of several hours of talks - mediated by human rights activists - the U.N. officials who run Kosovo's penal division decided to forcibly retake the cell bloc.

"At approximately 22:45 guards, who were unarmed, protected by shields and helmets, attempted to enter the building through the main entry way. Some one inside threw a mattress, which had been set on fire. Prisoners than set fire to other mattresses, which caused the fire to burn quickly beyond their control", Coffey explained.

The U.N. official said an international judge will be appointed to investigate the incident, and an independent mixed panel of international and local officials will be formed to look into the prisoners' complaints. dpa lu mga

September 5, 2003, Friday  - 12:02 Central European Time
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