Over 150 inmates escape (News Update)

Over 150 inmates at the District Prison at Dhangadhi in far-western Nepal have escaped following clashes between the Maoist insurgents and security personnel overnight Wednesday, the state-run Nepal Television said.

The prison housed nearly 170 inmates during the time of Maoist offensive. Nearly 70 of them had been detained on charge of being pro-Maoist activists. At least 17 inmates have already returned and have reported back to the authorities while the rest have escaped and have been taken away by the Maoist insurgents, Metro-2, a metro channel of the Nepal Television reported Thursday evening.

Security sources in Dhangadhi confirmed that five policemen were killed and four others were injured during the Maoist assault. Body of a suspected insurgent was also recovered after heavy gun battle. Security sources suspect that casualty on the part of the rebels could be much higher.

At least three hundred heavily armed rebels attacked District Police Office, Regional Police Office, other government offices and local branch of the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), reports said. Security forces said they were able to repulse the Maoist attack forcing the rebels to flee within hours of their attack.

Authorities said a massive search operation is underway in the region to locate escaped inmates and the insurgents.

Home Secretary Chandi Prasad Shrestha and other senior officials visited Dhangadhi Thursday afternoon and directed to strengthen security ‘bandobast.’

This was the first major offensive by the rebels after the royal move of February 1. nepalnews.com by Feb 10 05

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