Inmates die in Afghan jail clash

Prisoners say there was a hunger strike over conditions

Afghan authorities say eight inmates have been killed in clashes with prison guards at the Pul-e-Charkhi jail in the capital, Kabul.

Justice Minister Sarwar Danesh said the violence started after some prisoners resisted attempts by officers to search their cells.

Officials said they had information that a prison escape was being planned.

In June some 900 prisoners escaped from jail in the southern city of Kandahar after Taleban fighters blew up a gate.

'Under control'

The Afghan authorities said the officers were searching for weapons and mobile phones in Pul-e-Charkhi.

About 900 inmates escaped in the Kandahar incident

Mr Danesh said some of the prisoners had contacts with insurgents on the outside and that an explosion was going to be set off to help the escape.

He said 12 prisoners and three officers were injured in the clashes and the situation was now under control.

Some prisoners who contacted the BBC put the casualty figures higher.

They confirmed the clashes started after a refusal to allow cells to be searched. This followed an earlier hunger strike over conditions in the jail.

The BBC's Pam O'Toole says the authorities have accused Taleban prisoners of stirring up unrest over poor conditions but there are also accusations of poor security and rampant corruption in Afghan jails.

Pul-e-Charkhi houses several thousand prisoners, including members of the Taleban.

In the incident in Kandahar in June, 15 guards died in the truck bombing and rocket attack that began the outbreak.

The Nato forces admitted it was a success for the Taleban but insisted it was an isolated incident.