32 killed as IS militants riot in Tajik prison

At least 32 people were killed in a prison riot in Tajikistan, including 19 members of the Islamic State jihadist group and three guards, authorities said yesterday.

Five inmates and the three guards were initially killed by prisoners in the violence that erupted on Sunday evening, and the others died in clashes with security forces trying to restore order, the justice ministry said in a statement.

The prison in Vakhdat, 17 kilometres (11 miles) east of the capital Dushanbe, holds 1,500 inmates. The ministry said the rioters first stabbed to death three guards, and then five other inmates “in order to intimidate” others.