BBC News Online: World: Africa

Seven dead in Sudan prison riot

Seven people are reported to have been killed in a gun battle between Sudanese security forces and inmates at a prison near the capital, Khartoum.

The dead include five prisoners and two police officers.

Around 80 people have also been injured.

Sudan's Interior Ministry says police initially used tear gas to try to stop the riot.

But it says the situation escalated and shots were fired.

Correspondents say the trouble began when inmates who were on a hunger strike began destroying prison property. The prisoners had been refusing food since Saturday, with demands including reduced sentences.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service