On Tuesday, five inmates were killed during a search operation at a prison in Ivory Coast that escalated into a confrontation, according to the public prosecutor. Abel Nangbele Yeo stated that prisoners responded with "hostility" to what was described as a "routine" operation. Additionally, 29 individuals—comprising six prison officers and 23 inmates—sustained injuries during the incident at the Bouake prison. With a population of 27,000 inmates, Ivory Coast's prisons are significantly overcrowded, as reported by the online tracker Prison Insider. "On Tuesday, June 3, 2025, the prison administration conducted a search at Bouake prison to confiscate any items that violated regulations," Yeo explained.
Upon arriving at Building E, the officers faced aggression from the inmates in that section, who assaulted them with clubs, machetes, and other blunt objects.
"Under siege and outnumbered, the officers discharged warning shots to facilitate their retreat," he stated, noting that the national police assisted in "containing the violence and restoring order," while the 29 injured individuals received medical treatment.
The search "proceeded without further incidents" and revealed cannabis, pills, knives, 18 mobile phones, and three grenades.
In April, one inmate at Bouake prison died from asphyxiation, and three others were injured during an escape attempt.
A week later, a riot at a detention facility in the coastal city of Abidjan left 12 inmates injured. In July, the UN Committee Against Torture raised concerns about reports of "extreme prison overcrowding" and inadequate detention conditions in Ivory Coast. According to Prison Insider, Ivorian civil society organizations frequently highlight the excessive use of pre-trial detention and the lack of adjustments to sentences. The authorities assert that they have opened new prisons in recent years and that various presidential pardons issued between 2019 and 2023 have resulted in the release of approximately 11,000 prisoners.
