Protests at Roumieh Prison over Foiled Bid to Smuggle Cellphones

by Naharnet Newsdesk 19 January 2012, 17:50

Protests erupted on Thursday at Roumieh prison's ward B after security forces arrested a lady who was trying to smuggle mobile phones into the prison.

“Prisoners have reportedly took a number of guards hostage seeking to swap them for the held lady,” Voice of Lebanon radio station (93.3) reported.

At once, Colonel Amer Zaylaa, chief of the Internal Security Forces’ prisons brigade, deployed his troops outside and inside the building in a bid to contain the protests, VDL added.

Poor conditions in prisons and a slow judicial process have sparked several riots in Lebanese jails. Some prisoners can be incarcerated for years before their cases come to court.

Several failed and successful prison breaks have taken place in Roumieh throughout the past few months.

Roumieh was originally built to house 1,500 inmates but is today crammed with nearly 4,000 men -- 65 percent of the country's prison population.

Source: Naharnet

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