Bomb blasts outside Myanmar prison kill eight, injure 18 persons

The prison has been notorious for decades for holding political prisoners under various military governments.

In this photo provided by the Military True News Information Team, a parcel-reception location at the entrance of the Insein prison sits damaged after an explosion on Wednesday in Yangon, Myanmar. | Photo Credit: AP

A bombing on Wednesday near the front gate of Myanmar's main prison for political detainees killed at least eight people, including visitors and prison personnel, local media and the government said.

Five people who were delivering parcels to prisoners and three prison staff were killed when two bombs exploded around 9:40 a.m., News of Myanmar, an online news service sympathetic to the country's military government, reported on the Telegram social media platform. The blasts occurred inside and outside of the parcel reception office near the main iron gate of Insein Prison in Yangon, the country's biggest city.

The military's information office confirmed in a statement that five visitors, including a 10-year-old girl, and three prison staff were killed, and that an unexploded bomb had also been found in a parcel. It said 13 visitors, including a 9-year-old boy, and five prison personnel were being treated for injuries at Insein township hospital.

The prison has been notorious for decades for holding political prisoners under various military governments. Families of prisoners are allowed to bring parcels with items such as food, clothing and medicine.