Inmate dies in Jordan prison riot

Clashes lasted for several hours before the riot was quelled

One prisoner has been killed and several police officers wounded in unrest in a Jordanian prison.

Reports say the unrest at Qafqafa prison in the north of the country began after prisoners resisted being searched for knives.

Officials say the situation is now under control, after security forces stormed the prison to restore order.

Those being held at the prison include a number of Islamist inmates facing terrorism charges.

Police were looking for banned material, including "drugs, sharp objects and chemicals," government spokesman Nasser Judeh told AP news agency.

Earlier, one of the prisoners used a mobile telephone to tell al-Jazeera television that "two members of security" had been taken hostage.

However, Mr Judeh refused to comment on the claims.

He said several policemen sustained "light to medium injuries" during several hours of clashes.

Previous riots

According to AP, dozens of armed policemen surrounded the jail and snipers were positioned on rooftops within the compound.

The prison, near the northern city of Irbid, is one of six in Jordan.

The latest riot is the second at a Jordanian prison in the past month.

Clashes broke out at Juwaida prison in the capital, Amman, at the beginning of March, after police tried to move two inmates who had been sentenced to death for the 2002 murder of a US diplomat.