Palestinian prisoners escape from Israeli prison

Hundreds of Islamic Jihad supporters marched in Gaza on Monday after six Palestinians broke out from a high-security Israeli prison in one of the largest prison breaks in decades. The men dug a tunnel that started under the sink in their cell and came up outside the prison wall. They include Zakaria Zubeidi, a prominent leader of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, and members of the Islamic Jihad.

How is the search going? Israeli officials set up roadblocks and conducted patrols around the Gilboa prison, north of the West Bank. Army Radio said authorities relocated some 400 prisoners to avoid any further escape attempts. Hamas, the Islamist group that controls Gaza, called the escape “a heroic act” by “heroic detainees.” In 1987, six militants from the Islamic Jihad broke out of a heavily secured prison in Gaza months before the first Palestinian uprising against Israel.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archive, read Mindy Belz’s report on the crisis between Israel and Palestinians in the West Bank.