In recent years Iraq’s prisons have witnessed several
successful and attempted escapes. The most recent example was at a facility in
Tikrit, Salahaddin in which over 100 inmates were able to get out. In almost
every case, the guards and administration were implicated. Iraq’s penal system
is simply riddled with corruption, which means these jailbreaks will continue.
On September 27, 2012, armed inmates overwhelmed the Tasfirat prison in Tikrit. The attempt began with a suicide bomber setting off a car bomb in front of the prison. Detainees were then able to get out
of their cells, and broke into the facility’s weapons storeroom. It took a
day’s worth of fighting before the prison was taken the following morning with
Baghdad sending in special forces to help. Over two dozen inmates and members
of the security forces were killed in the process. That was not before up to
120 prisoners got out, with around 40 immediately being picked up. Many of
the prison’s files were destroyed as well. Some of the escapees included senior
members in Al Qaeda in Iraq and its umbrella organization the Islamic State of
Iraq. This was not a spontaneous prison riot, which simply got out of hand. The
explosion, which set off the escape pointed to an organized operation with
outside help. In fact, three more car bombs were discovered near the prison,
and defused. The inmates also displayed a high level of organization such as
when they destroyed the prison’s records. There was obviously advanced
planning, which included militants from the province. There might have been
inside help as well.
The Interior Ministry immediately blamed officials at Tasfirat for helping with the escape. The Ministry accused guards of
colluding with the prisoners, and leaving sections of the facility unlocked. It
also said that weapons were smuggled into the prison during family visits.
Because the prison was in Salahaddin, the home province of Saddam Hussein, this
could be a case of the staff being sympathetic to the insurgency. Corruption
could have also played a role. Paying off staff members would have been an easy
way to get their cooperation in the prison break.
The Tasfirat prison was just the latest in a series of
escapes that have happened over the last three years. In 2009, 16 inmates
escaped from a bathroom window at Tasfirat. In July 2010, the warden of Karkh Prison drove four high-level Al Qaeda officials out of the facility. In
January 2011, 12 Al Qaeda members got out of a prison located in Basra’s Presidential Palace. Guards and the Basra intelligence unit were all
suspected, but later it came to light that an official from Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s office might have been involved as well. That same month, a League of the Righteous commander got out of Taji Prison in Salahaddin. In
May, Al Qaeda militants started a revolt at an Interior Ministry building in Baghdad in which guards provided them with weapons. That was put down
before any could get out. Also in May, five Mahdi Army leaders escaped from
Taji as well with guards and politicians being blamed. In April 2012, there was
another escape attempt at Tasfirat, which was discovered and squashed. Finally,
in July insurgents attacked a prison in Baghdad for five hours in an
unsuccessful try to get their compatriots out. Iraq’s prison system obviously
has major problems. First, they are not very secure as the number of successful
breakouts shows. Second, almost all the attempts included inside assistance.
The fact that they took place in southern, central, and northern Iraq would
point to more than just support for the insurgency as being the reason. Iraq is
notorious for its corruption, so bribes could have played a role. Threats to
the staff might have been another means to secure their support.
The breakout at Tasfirat will not be the last time militants
get out of one of Iraq’s prisons. The sophistication of the attack, and the
large number of prisoners that got out did seem to be a first however.
Hopefully that won’t set a precedent, but Salahaddin has seen similar
well-planned attacks upon government facilities. The penal authorities also
seem incapable of keeping their staff on the straight and narrow. As long as
there are determined militants, and corrupt officials these escapes will remain
a regular feature of the Iraqi landscape.
SOURCES
AK News, “Over 40 inmates arrested after Tikrit prison
break,” 9/28/12
Associated Press, “Iraq’s Interior Ministry: Jailbreak in
Saddam’s hometown was inside job, 20 killed,” 9/29/12
- “Al Qaeda suspects escape Iraq prison in deadly break,”
9/28/12
BBC, “Iraq militants attack Tikrit prison, freeing 90
inmates,” 9/28/12
Nabhan, Ali and Dagher, Sam, “Militants Feared Among Iraq
Escapees,” Wall Street Journal, 9/28/12
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