• More than 250 of the 822 inmates who escaped from a prison in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have been apprehended.
• The armed forces are still looking for remaining inmates from the Kakwangura central prison.
• Prison was stormed by armed men on Wednesday, killing two police officers and injuring 15 others.

More than 250 of the 822 inmates who escaped from a prison in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have been apprehended, According to authorities.

Security officials presented 166 inmates on Thursday, in addition to the 86 other fugitives who were said to have been apprehended earlier with the help of the public.

The armed forces are still looking for remaining inmates from the Kakwangura central prison in Butembo, which was stormed by armed men.

At 02:30 on Wednesday, an estimated 80 attackers overpowered the 15 police officers guarding the prison, according to army spokesman Capt Anthony Mwalushayi.

The army blames the attack on the ADF, an armed group with ties to the Islamist State (IS) jihadist group. The IS group has admitted responsibility for the attack.

According to the authorities, two police officers were killed at the prison, and three fugitives believed to be ADF fighters were later burned alive by locals.

Meanwhile, there is still a tense atmosphere surrounding the many other escapees who remain at large, even though many residents have resumed their daily activities, with shops reopening.

This is not the first time a mass jailbreak has occurred in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

More than 3,000 inmates escaped from the high-security Makala prison in Kinshasa in 2017.

Prison structures are old, and overcrowding is widespread across the country.

[embedpost slug=”ten-die-in-dr-congo-large-anti-un-demonstrations-protest/”]