Four Marines Die in Afghanistan; 870 Inmates Escape

Noor Khan And Jason Straziuso, The Associated Press, report: "About 870 prisoners escaped during a Taliban bomb and rocket attack on the main prison in southern Afghanistan that knocked down the front gate and demolished a prison floor, Afghan officials said Saturday. And in western Afghanistan on Saturday, a roadside bomb exploded near a US military vehicle, killing four Americans in the deadliest attack against US troops in the country this year, officials said.

http://www.truthout.org/article/four-marines-die-afghanistan-870-inmates-escape

Building better prisons is hardly the answer.

Hashimzai said the jail did not meet international minimum standards for a prison. The Kandahar facility was not built as a prison but had been modified into one, he said.

A delegation of deputy ministers from the Justice and Interior ministries left for Kandahar early Saturday.

"Plans are under way to renovate all the prisons around the country," said Hashimzai. "Kandahar was one of them, but unfortunately what happened last night is cause for concern."