A fire that broke out during a riot at a prison in the predominantly Kurdish city of Kobani in northern Syria killed at least seven inmates, according to state media on Saturday.
Violence erupted in the city this week as residents protested the killing of Sami Shehmous Hiso, a former Kurdish fighter.
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“Seven prisoners died and dozens were injured, burned, or suffocated following the riot,” state television reported.
It reported that the prisoners set fire to the prison building and the fire spread to several dormitories.
In January, the Syrian government and the Kurds, who once controlled parts of northern and northeastern Syria, reached an integration agreement following clashes that led to the Kurds losing territory.
Last month, the leader of the Syrian Kurds, Mazloum Abdi, stated that the integration of Kurdish political and military institutions into the Syrian state had been completed and announced the dissolution of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces led by the Kurds, a few days later.
The prison riot was the first incident since the dissolution was announced.
Hiso, also known as Sepan, was reportedly abducted before his body was returned with gunshot wounds on Thursday in the northeastern province of Hasakah.
The governor of Hasakah province, Nureddin Ahmed Aisha, condemned “this heinous crime.”
Sipan Hamo, regional deputy defense minister and a former senior Kurdish military official, stated that several people had already been arrested in connection with the case and urged residents to “show patience and restraint.”
Kurds had gathered in many parts of the north and northeast to protest the killing.
State television reported that during Friday’s violence, “lawbreakers” attacked police patrol cars and the Internal Security Directorate building.
Security forces were deployed, it added. The deployment of forces within the perimeter of the Kobani prison led some inmates to fear they would be transferred elsewhere, and, in a panic, they set fire to some dormitories, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Saturday.
It reported that nine detainees had died, a higher number than that reported by state television.
Kobani holds symbolic significance for the Kurds, as it was there that Kurdish fighters repelled and defeated the jihadists of the Islamic State in 2015.
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