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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Josh Salisbury

Mozambique prison riot leaves 33 dead as widespread civil unrest grips country

A barricade burns Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Mozambique’s capital, Maputo - (AP)

A prison riot in Mozambique's capital Maputo has left 33 people dead and 15 injured.

It comes as civil unrest linked to October's disputed election continues.

A decision on Monday by Mozambique's top court confirming long-ruling party Frelimo's victory in the election has sparked fresh nationwide protest by opposition groups and their supporters who say the vote was rigged.

Justice Minister Helena Kida told local private broadcaster Miramar TV that the unrest was started inside the prison and had nothing to do with protests outside.

"The confrontations after that resulted in 33 deaths and 15 injured in the vicinity of the jail,” the country's police general commander Bernardino Rafael said on Wednesday.

The identities of those killed and injured were unclear.

About 1,534 people escaped from the prison in the incident but 150 have now been recaptured, Rafael said, adding that there were prison break attempts at two other prisons.

"We are worried as a country, Mozambicans and security forces," Rafael said. "We expect in the next 48 hours a rise in crime."

Mozambique's interior minister said on Tuesday that at least 21 people were killed in unrest after the top court's decision.

Prior to Tuesday, civil society monitoring group Plataforma Decide said at least 130 people have been killed in clashes with police since the unrest started.

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