CAIRO: Police opened fire on prisoners trying to escape from a prison in northern Egypt on Wednesday, killing three and wounding eight, security officials said.
None of the prisoners escaped during the attempted prison break in Damanhour, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) northeast of Cairo, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to brief the media.
The prison is home to two well-known Egyptian detainees — Tarek El-Zomor and his cousin, Lt. Abboud El-Zomor. Both men are serving a life sentence for taking part in the assassination of President Anwar Sadat during a Cairo military parade on Oct. 6, 1981.
They were convicted in 1984 of plotting the assassination and of belonging to the outlawed Islamic Jihad group — but not of actually killing Sadat. The five prime suspects, including the shooter, were captured and executed.
The El-Zomor cousins were not among the prisoners who tried to escape Wednesday, the officials said.
About 23,000 of the nation’s 80,000 prisoners escaped, and at least 120 died, during an 18-day uprising that lead to the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak on Feb. 11.
