Lebanese police hunt after jailbreak

BEIRUT: Police in Lebanon on Saturday hunted for 44 fugitive prisoners who escaped from a detention centre on the outskirts of Beirut, calling on local residents to be on alert.

Despite tight security, 69 people broke out of a detention facility near the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, a police statement said.

Five were killed in a car accident, when they lost control of the stolen vehicle as they rushed away and crashed into a tree. One other person was taken to hospital.

By early afternoon on Saturday, 15 had been recaptured, and another four had handed themselves back in, leaving 44 on the run.