PhotoBlog - colombo

Nov

2012

1:51pm, EST

Dozens killed in prison gunfight with Sri Lankan police

Reuters

Rioting prisoners fire weapons and cheer from a roof during clashes with Sri Lanka's Special Task Force at Welikada prison in Colombo, Nov. 9, 2012.

Reuters

Prison officers carry an injured colleague during clashes at Welikada prison in Colombo, Nov. 9.

Reuters reports — Ten people were killed in a gunfight at Sri Lanka's biggest jail on Friday that started when police conducting a routine search came under fire from inmates, officials and police said.

Witnesses said they saw police shooting towards the prison where armed inmates were on the roof. Hospital officials in Colombo who gave the death toll were not able to say if the victims were police or prisoners.

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Gemunu Amarasinghe / AP

Sri Lankan inmates shout from a roof of a prison as guards carry an injured colleague, foreground, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Nov. 9.

Gemunu Amarasinghe / AP

Soldiers arrive outside a prison in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Nov 9.

Ship sinks off coast of Sri Lanka, creates oil spill

Oil floats on water in the foreground as the half-sunk Cyprus-flagged carrier Thmothrmopolyseara lies in the Indian ocean off the southern suburban coast of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Aug. 26. Authorities mobilized coast guards and volunteers to clean beaches following an oil spill after the Thmothrmopolyseara sank off-shore because of bad weather. The ship went down Thursday after remaining in anchorage for over three years following a dispute over its cargo.