Jordan: Inmates riot over segregation of al-Qaida suspects

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Scores of inmates rioted Monday in a Jordan prison, protesting a move by authorities to segregate al-Qaida-linked militants from other convicts in violence that left three inmates dead, police said. Anti-riot police "brought order" to Muwaqqar Penitentiary three hours after the violence erupted, a police official said, without elaborating on how the riot was put down. The official said three inmates died, apparently from smoke inhalation after rioters set fire to mattresses. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not allowed to speak to the press. The riots began when wardens tried to move some non-militant inmates to other sections of the desert prison, or to Jordan's nine other detention facilities in line with a police regulation introduced last week, the official said. It was not clear whether the riot was started by militants or other prisoners.