Suspected rebels kill guard, free 150 prisoners in Philippines

Men suspected to have links to rebels attacked a prison in the Philippines killing a guard and freeing no less than 150 prisoners.

Reports say the armed men suspected to have links to the Philippines’ largest Muslim rebel group stormed the prison in the south of the country, in a raid unconfirmed reports say was carried out by Satar Mandalondong, a MILF commander.

Prison warden Peter Bongat told a local radio station that of the jail’s 1,511 inmates, 158 managed to escape and four were recaptured.

“It’s well planned. Escapees used blanket as their getaway…We have a manhunt operation,” said Bongat.

According to Al Jazeera’s Jamela Alindogan, reporting from Manila security forces are on the trail of the armed men.

“What we know at the moment is that the army had to send reinforcements to mitigate the forces of the Philippine National Police that have been pursuing the armed group that led the jailbreak.

“We have reports that there have been fatalities [as a result of the operation],” she said.