Yemen security forces "foil" al-Qaeda prison escape attempt

Security forces in Yemen foiled an al-Qaeda inmate escape attempt from a Sana'a prison Wednesday, according to AFP.

Nearly 300 al-Qaeda inmates reportedly escaped from their cells and attacked prison guards with knives and iron bars Tuesday afternoon. Many of the guards were wounded and some were held hostage.

The prisoners broke through the first security barrier, but guards at the second security barrier managed to "foil the group's attempt to flee," according to the report's official informant.

Some of the inmates were wounded in the clashes, but none were killed.

The prisoners' hostages from the initial clashes Tuesday were released early Wednesday after mediation, but the prisoners maintained possession of their weapons. Police are reportedly still trying to "control the situation" at the prison.

Al-Qaeda prisoners have escaped from the same Sanaa prison in the past. Nasser al-Wuhayshi, the chief of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, escaped from the prison with 22 other AQAP members in February 2006 by digging a 44-meter tunnel between a prison cell and a nearby mosque. He was appointed the head of the group a year later.

Al-Wuhaysi recently vowed in August to release imprisoned members of his AQAP.

The US considers the AQAP branch of Al-Qaeda as the "deadliest franchise" of the terrorist network.