Militants attacked two Iraqi prisons including the notorious Abu Ghraib in a bid to free inmates, sparking all-night clashes in which at least 41 people were killed, officials said on Monday.
The coordinated attacks on Taji prison, north of Baghdad, and the Abu Ghraib facility, west of the Iraqi capital, were launched on Sunday night and raged for around 10 hours, officials said. A police colonel said seven inmates escaped from Abu Ghraib during the clashes but were later arrested, while jihadists claimed on the Internet that thousands of prisoners were freed.
Officials said at least 20 members of the security forces were killed and 40 wounded in the attacks. Justice ministry spokesman said that 21 inmates were killed and 25 wounded during rioting at the prisons, without specifying whether they were bystanders or taking part in the fighting. It was not immediately clear how many of the militants who attacked the prison were killed, wounded or captured. The attacks were launched at around 9:30 pm (1830 GMT) yesterday when the gunmen fired mortar rounds at the prisons.