A Taliban attack at a jail in the Afghan city of Kandahar set hundreds of detainees free. The 1,000 inmates who were in the jail at that time escaped according to Wali Karzai, Kandahar provincial council president, the BBC reported.

More than 350 of those who escaped were believed to be Taliban. The terrorist group said there were at least 400 Taliban among the inmates.

The attack was acknowledged by the Taliban through their spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi, who told AFP by phone from an unknown location.

Reports show that there have been several victims among the security forces. About 40 Taliban attacked the jail. They managed to get pass the jail’s main gate after blowing it up with a lorry bomb.

The attack prompted local authorities to declare a state of emergency in Kandahar city.
As a consequence, the streets of the city were flooded with police personnel and residents have been ordered to remain in their houses.

There were some inmates who remained in the jail said prison chief Abdul Qabir according to The Associated Press. Last month, the detainees in Kandahar prison carried on a week-long hunger strike forcing authorities to address their demands.

The city of Kandahar is one of the key areas in the Taliban's insurgency against President Hamid Karzai and US troops.