Six dead in Sri Lankan prison riot

Six inmates have been killed and 52 others injured when guards opened fire to control a riot at a prison on the outskirts of Sri Lanka's capital, officials have said.

Two guards have been critically injured.

Pandemic-related unrest has been growing in Sri Lanka's overcrowded prisons. Inmates have staged protests in recent weeks at several prisons as the number of coronavirus cases surges in the facilities.

Police spokesman Ajith Rohana said inmates created "unrest" on Sunday at Mahara prison, about 15 kilometres north of Colombo, and officials attempted to control the situation.

But "the unrest situation turned into a prison riot", he said on Monday, adding that prisoners tried to take control of the prison and hundreds attempted to escape.

The inmates "reportedly destroyed most of the property including offices inside the prison", Rohana said.

More than a thousand inmates in five prisons have tested positive for the coronavirus and at least two have died. About 50 prison guards have also tested positive.

Sri Lankan prisons are highly congested with more than 26,000 inmates crowded into facilities with a capacity of 10,000.