Inmates at Afghanistan's main high security Pul-e-Charkhi jail in Kabul have rioted, prison officials say, and four prisoners are reported killed.
Hundreds of prisoners are barricaded inside one wing of the jail, parts of which are on fire, the authorities say.
Gunfire has been heard coming from the jail. Trouble apparently started after a change in prison uniform rules.
A senior official told the BBC that two female prison guards had been taken hostage by prisoners.
Police have sealed off the affected wing and no-one has escaped, jail officials say. Interior Ministry reinforcements have been sent in.
An official told the BBC that Taleban and al-Qaeda elements were behind the violence.
Pul-e-Charkhi is a huge prison complex built in the 1970s on the outskirts of the capital. It is used to house common criminals as well as al-Qaeda or Taleban-linked militants.
Last month, seven Taleban suspects escaped from the jail, with prison guards accused by officials of helping the break-out.
Correspondents say the vast and rundown jail is notorious for the disappearance and torture of thousands of Afghans during the communist era.
(BBC)
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