Afghanistan jailbreak frees more than a dozen, including Taliban

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KABUL, Afghanistan -- Inmates at a prison in northern Afghanistan staged a dramatic jailbreak, blasting through a surrounding wall to flee into the night, Afghan officials said Friday. Fourteen were still at large, including several members of the Taliban.

The escape took place about 10 p.m. Thursday in Sar-i-Pul province, north of Kabul, where the Taliban and other insurgent groups have been seeking a foothold. The provincial governor, Abdul Jabar Haqbeen, said three of the prisoners were shot and killed by guards as they tried to get away, and that more than two dozen others were injured.

It was not immediately clear whether the bomb that breached the prison wall was set off from inside or outside. In past jailbreaks, collusion has usually been uncovered among prisoners, outside accomplices and prison officials or guards on the inside.

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