ISIS riot in Tajikistan ends with 3 guards and 29 inmates dead.

A prison. BBC/Reuters.

A riot started by ISIS prisoners in Tajikistan ends with 3 guards and 29 inmates dead. BBC. ISIS prisoners started to riot and killed five fellow prisoners and the three guards. Guards then opened fire, though it is unclear how many of the dead were the ISIS fighters or general prisoners. Two of the prisoners killed by ISIS were members of the banned Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan (IRPT) including a senior member named Sattor Karimov. This is the 2nd major prison riot caused by ISIS in Tajikistan as the terror group took responsibility for another riot last November that left 2 guards and 21 prisoners dead. 

My Comment:

I don't know too much about Tajikistan or the conditions of the prisoners there but I do know a bit about prison riots. Back in my college days I read about some of the worst prison riots here in the United States and I have to say the whole idea is horrifying. Imagine being a non-ISIS prisoner in this riot. Not only do you have to worry about the ISIS guys killing you but you stand a good chance of being caught up in the crossfire when the guards open fire. And you would have no way to defend yourself from either. Horrifying. 

This prison riot is the 2nd one in Tajikistan and it makes me wonder how bad conditions are in the country's prison. Riots are often caused by bad conditions and poor security can make them much worse. My guess is these prisons aren't the best in the world and lives could have been saved if they were ran better. That's not a knock on Tajikistan as America's prisons have their own problems with rioting, but it seems likely to be true. 

As for ISIS, this just shows that even as they have been destroyed on the battlefield they remain a threat. Even though ISIS has been greatly reduced there are many surviving fighters and supporters and even imprisoning them doesn't end the threat. 

Just because someone is locked up doesn't mean that they aren't still a threat. Many of these ISIS survivors are battle hardened warriors or terrorists. And they can recruit and radicalize while they are in prison. They won't have a problem trying to kill others and commit terrorism. 

Of course ISIS has a long history of being involved in prisons. They were pretty much formed in one as Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi formed the precursor for ISIS in an Iraqi prison. The problem with housing these people together is that they can work with each other and radicalize other prisoners. That's how ISIS started and there is no reason that it won't continue in the future. 

I have the feeling that this problem won't just be contained to Tajikistan. Many states are holding ISIS prisoners and I think the same thing could happen again and again unless many steps are taken to prevent it. ISIS fighters should not be housed with other ISIS fighters and should probably have their interactions with other prisoners reduced with continous solitary confinement the best solution. That may seem somewhat cruel but given it's ISIS I don't think many people will object