300 Killed in Rebel Bid to Free Prisoners

More than 300 people were killed when a gang of Hutu rebels attacked a jail in northwestern Rwanda in a bid to free hundreds of their colleagues, the British Broadcasting Corp. said. The BBC said the attack was launched Monday, and clashes between the rebels and the Tutsi-dominated army continued until Wednesday. The radio, monitored in Nairobi, Kenya, quoted Rwandan officials as saying about 1,200 rebels raided the jail, where most of the prisoners were awaiting trial on charges connected to the 1994 Rwandan genocide that left more than 800,000 people dead. The officials said dozens of prisoners were killed in cross-fire or when the rebels set fire to the jail.