{{short description|Taliban raid of Sarposa Prison in Kandahar, Afghanistan}} {{Infobox military conflict | conflict = Sarposa Prison attack | partof = the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)]] | image = {{Location map |Afghanistan | width = 300 | lat_deg = 31.6289 | lon_deg = 65.7372 | label = Kandahar }} | caption = | date = June 13, 2008 | place = [[Kandahar]], [[Afghanistan]] | coordinates = {{Coord|31|37|08|N|65|40|05|E|region:AF_type:airport |display=inline,title}} | result = Taliban victory<br><small>(1,200+ prisoners freed)</small>. | combatant1 = {{flagicon|Afghanistan|2004}} [[Islamic Republic of Afghanistan]] | combatant2 = {{flagicon|Afghanistan|Taliban}} [[Taliban]] | commander1 = | commander2 = | strength1 = | strength2 = | casualties1 = 15 policemen killed<ref name="NYTimes">{{cite news |first=Carlotta |last=Gall |author-link=Carlotta Gall |title=Taliban Free 1,200 Inmates in Attack on Afghan Prison |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/14/world/asia/14kandahar.html?_r=1&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin | work = [[The New York Times]] |date=June 14, 2008 |access-date=2008-06-15 }} </ref> | casualties2 = 8 prisoners killed<br>2 suicide bombers detonated }} {{Campaignbox US war in Afghanistan}}
The '''Sarposa Prison attack''' was a raid on the [[Sarposa Prison]] in [[Kandahar]], [[Afghanistan]] by [[Taliban]] insurgents on June 13, 2008. One of the largest attacks by Afghan insurgents, the raid freed 400-1,000 prisoners.<ref name="time">[[Time magazine]], "[http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1814433,00.html?xid=feed-cnn-topics&iref=werecommend Taliban Militants Storm Afghan Jail]", June 13, 2008{{dead link|date=January 2020}}</ref> As of 2008, prison administration was overseen by Abdul Qabir.<ref name="time"/>
==Followed unrest== In May 2008, 200 prisoners announced a [[hunger strike]] and 47 of the captives physically stitched their mouths shut to protest detention conditions. The strike ended when the [[National Assembly of Afghanistan|Afghan parliament]] agreed to review their detentions; as some of them had been held for two years without charge, or faced summary trials they felt were unfair.<ref name="time"/>
==Raid== On June 13, a [[tanker truck|suicide fuel truck]] drove right into the front gates of Sarposa prison at approximately 21:00 after [[Dusk|nightfall]].<ref name="sask"/> Although the truck failed to explode upon impact, the Taliban quickly improvised, igniting its fuel with an [[Rocket-propelled grenade|RPG]], causing a massive explosion that breached the gate. Taliban fighters then stormed the prison, overpowering the surprised guards.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Malkasian |first1=Carter |title=The American War in Afghanistan: A History |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-755077-9 |page=208-209 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VPQuEAAAQBAJ |language=en}}</ref> A second [[suicide bomber]] was alleged to have walked to the back gates of the prison in the confusion, and detonated the explosives he was carrying,<ref name="time"/> although later reports suggested the rear wall had not been breached.<ref>Panetta, Alexander. [[Canadian Press]], [http://www.cjad.com/news/56/738924 Canadian troops encounter bomb, exchange gunfire on patrol in Kandahar City], June 17, 2008</ref> Insurgents fired rockets at the prison as the Taliban fighters broke in and a 30-minute battle began.
Over the next thirty minutes, a team of thirty insurgents aboard motorcycles fired [[AK-47]]s and RPGs into the prison. Several ran into the prison and began freeing prisoners<ref name="sask">Schmidt, Doug. [[Saskatoon Star Phoenix]], [http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/story.html?id=6e488878-4df4-4b13-95d9-32bf48c263e4 1,000 inmates escape from Afghan prison after blast], June 13, 2008</ref> who fled through the breached walls, and disappeared into nearby [[pomegranate]] and grape groves.<ref name="time"/>
==Outcome== Wali Karzai, the brother of President [[Hamid Karzai]] who was president of Kandahar's provincial council, said the prison held about 350 suspected Taliban fighters.
He said "all" the prisoners escaped and that "There is no one left."<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 June 2008 |title=Hundreds escape in Afghan prison attack |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna25146271 |access-date=2022-08-22 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> The prisoners were aided by minibuses waiting for them outside the prison during the attack. Some 390 of the detainees were suspected Taliban fighters. Reports of people killed in the attack included police officers, 8 prisoners and the 2 suicide bombers.<ref name="NYTimes" /><ref>{{cite news |first=Barbara |last=Starr |author2=Peikar, Farhad |title=Taliban fighters escape after Afghan prison bombing|url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/13/afghanistan.taliban/index.html |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=June 14, 2008 |access-date=2008-06-15 }}</ref>
Following reports of the mass escape, Canadian troops stationed at [[Kandahar Airfield]] were deployed to secure the prison<ref name="star">Panetta, Alexander. [[Toronto Star]], [https://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/443120 Kandahar prison attacked], June 13, 2008</ref> and [[International Security Assistance Force|ISAF]] troops began a door-to-door search through Kandahar seeking escapees.<ref name="sask"/> ISAF forces became involved in several skirmishes that resulted in 20 Taliban deaths in Tabin, 16 in Khohak, and [[Arghandab, Afghanistan|Arghandab]], with 2 Afghan and 4 British soldiers killed in separate incidents,<ref>[http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AFGHAN_VIOLENCE?SITE=SCCOL&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Afghan, NATO troops kill 36 Taliban near Kandahar]</ref> which led up to the [[Battle of Arghandab (2008)|Battle of Arghandab]].
The Sarposa prison break and its aftermath dealt a significant blow to the Afghan government, prompting President [[Hamid Karzai|Karzai]] to issue threats of sending Afghan troops into Pakistan to pursue Taliban leaders hiding there. In response to the debacle, the frustrated Karzai replaced both the provincial police chief and the governor of Kandahar. [[Toryalai Wesa|Tooryalai Wesa]], a [[Barakzai]] with close ties to the Karzai family, was appointed as the new governor. Concerned about the worsening situation in southern Afghanistan, General [[David D. McKiernan|David McKiernan]] redirected the [[2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment]] to bolster defenses in western Kandahar.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Malkasian |first1=Carter |title=The American War in Afghanistan: A History |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-755077-9 |page=209 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VPQuEAAAQBAJ |language=en}}</ref>
==See also== *[[Sarposa Prison tunneling escape]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{WoTPrisoners}} {{War in Afghanistan}}
[[Category:Suicide car and truck bombings in Afghanistan]] [[Category:Terrorist incidents in Afghanistan in 2008]] [[Category:Attacks on prisons in Afghanistan]] [[Category:21st century in Kandahar]] [[Category:Prison escapes in Asia]] [[Category:Taliban bombings]] [[Category:June 2008 in Afghanistan]] [[Category:Suicide bombings in 2008]] [[Category:Car and truck bombings in 2008]] [[Category:Islamic terrorist incidents in 2008]] [[Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 2008]] [[Category:Tank truck explosions in Afghanistan]] [[Category:2008 massacres in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)]] [[Category:2008 mass murders]]