Overview
- A riot that began during family visiting hours on Saturday at Mahara Prison outside Colombo left at least one inmate dead and six others wounded, police said.
- Authorities brought in Special Task Force commandos, hundreds of troops and air support including helicopters and drones to restore order and return inmates to their cells.
- Inmates set fires and destroyed key facilities inside the complex, completely damaging the kitchen, prison hospital, a rehabilitation block and vocational training areas.
- Mahara held about 4,100 inmates—roughly four times its intended capacity—and Sri Lanka's 22 prisons have official space for about 11,000 but hold more than 41,000 convicted prisoners plus thousands of remand detainees.
- Officials have tightened security across major jails, imposed then lifted local curfews, opened probes into how the violence unfolded, and face pressure to fast-track plans to expand detention capacity to reduce the risk of further unrest.