An attack on a prison in northwest Pakistan led to the escape of 384 prisoners, including terrorist and militant fighters, some of whom had been given death sentences. More than 100 fighters attacked the Bannu jail around 1:30 in the morning, blowing open the main gate with grenades and meeting almost no resistance as they took over the prison for more than two hours, unlocking cells to free the prisoners. One of those who escaped was a former military officer convicted in 2003 for attempting to assassinate former president Pervez Musharraf. The attack comes on the heels of a day of nation-wide Taliban attacks in neighboring Afghanistan, with both incidents underscoring how little control either government has over the militant armies still fighting in their country. About dozen prisoners had been recaptured or returned to the prison, but most escaped into the wild tribal regions in the northern mountains of the country and are unlikely captured unless they return to the fighting.

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Dashiell Bennett