Iraqi counter-terrorism force deployed to Hillah prison for search operation

HILLAH, Iraq — Counter-terrorism units from Iraq's Interior Ministry were dispatched from Baghdad to Babil province on Friday afternoon and joined local police in a search and inspection operation at the Hillah Reform Facility, the old prison in the provincial capital. Security sources told the agency that part of the deployment is linked to an operation to transfer certain inmates to prisons outside the province. The deployment followed a roughly one-hour inmate protest at Hillah prison two days earlier. After the incident was brought under control, the Prime Minister's Office ordered the formation of an investigative committee to review the conditions surrounding the protest and examine the inmates' demands. Babil Police Directorate said the security presence around the prison is part of routine and regular inspections and that there is no cause for concern. The provincial office of Iraq's High Commission for Human Rights, however, reported a lack of experience among staff handling the situation and said some personnel had facilitated the entry of prohibited items. The human rights commission repeated its recommendation that the prison, a facility dating to the 1930s located in the city center and considered a safety risk, be shut down and that inmates be transferred to modern facilities under the Justice Ministry.