Mass Jailbreak As Taliban Storms Prison

Over 250 Taliban and al-Qaeda prisoners were freed when the Taliban launched a military-style assault on Pakistan's Central Prison in Dera Ismail Khan, including several of what Pakistani security referred to as 'high level prisoners', including six people scheduled for execution.

Central Prison is supposedly one of the most heavily guarded facilities in the country.

According to one of the surviving guards, the Taliban attack force blew up the main gate and then targeted the guards with RPG and mortar fire.Gunmen blew up the power lines to the prison and detonated bombs to breach the outer walls. At least 12 people were killed, including five policemen and four Shi'ite Muslim prisoners whose throats were slit by the Sunni Taliban attackers. The attack was extremely well planned...out of an estimated population of 5,000 prisoners, the Taliban knew exactly where of the prisoners they wanted to free were incarcerated.

My sources tell me this was almost certainly an inside job. Only about 70 of the 200 prison guards who were supposed to be on duty were present that night, and most of them simply ran away without returning fire. Some of the inmates were were also reportedly provided with cellphones by the guards, and were likely in touch with the Taliban.

Also, if mortars were used, inside information and good recon would have been necessary to get the range and coordinates. And the location of the prison, in the Pashtun areas that border Afghanistan ensured that the Taliban likely had local support for the attack as well.

There was a similar mass jailbreak in the northern town of Bannu about a year ago which was carried out with inside help from the prison guards.In fact, thus latest attack was reportedly led by Taliban commander Adnan Rashid, who was busted out of jail in the Bannu attack.