13 prisoners killed in Turkey jail fire

Thirteen prisoners were killed in a fire that broke out in a jail in southeast Turkey overnight during a dispute among inmates, a local official said on Sunday.

The blaze, at a jail housing about 1,000 prisoners in Sanliurfa province, occurred after a row flared up among a group of 18 inmates in one dormitory on Saturday evening, provincial governor Celalettin Guvenc told reporters.

Some Turkish media reports said the prisoners had set fire to their bedding in a protest, but the governor denied there was any mutiny.

The remaining five inmates in the dormitory suffered injuries.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze after about 1 1/2 hours. Security personnel were also sent to the jail to restore order, media reports said.

Ibrahim Ayhan, a member of parliament from the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) was among the inmates at the prison, but was not believed to have been hurt, broadcaster NTV said.

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