Negombo Prison Riot, Sri Lanka – July 2026

A two-day riot at Negombo Prison in Sri Lanka killed 26 people, including seven guards, and injured more than 100. The violence began on the evening of Sunday, July 5, 2026, and continued into Monday, July 6, at the facility located approximately 35 kilometers north of Colombo.

Twenty-three bodies were brought to Negombo Hospital, while 18 of the more seriously wounded were transferred to Colombo National Hospital. The injured included people with gunshot wounds, cuts, and severe bruises, according to the hospital director and medical staff.

Local residents and media reported hearing multiple gunshots from inside the prison during the violence. Security forces including police riot control squads, police special forces, and commandos were deployed to control the riot, while armed forces guarded the prison perimeter but did not enter the facility.

The military was requested by police to provide support and placed on standby; military personnel in armoured vehicles moved into position around the prison after dusk. Following the riot, some inmates were transferred to other prisons.

In a separate incident during the unrest, women inmates in an adjoining prison section climbed onto the roof demanding release. Part of the roof collapsed, injuring some of the women.

The riot was described as Sri Lanka's deadliest prison violence in years. A previous riot in late 2020 killed 11 inmates and injured 117 others, prompting the government to subsequently release hundreds of inmates from overcrowded jails. An earlier riot in Colombo in 2012 left 27 people dead.

Sri Lankan prisons held 41,250 inmates as of July 5, operating at approximately four times their capacity. Negombo Prison itself holds approximately 2,400 inmates according to the Department of Prisons.

All sources agree the violence was drug-related, but characterizations of the specific trigger differ across outlets. Police described it as a clash between inmates from two drug gangs. BBC News reported it was triggered by an inmate informing on a drug trafficking operation. The prisons commissioner linked it to drug trafficking but declined to provide further details.

The pattern of casualties differed across the two days. Two people were killed and approximately 38 inmates were injured on Sunday, July 5. A second, more deadly round of clashes on Monday morning killed 23 or more additional people, including six prison officials.

The fighting on Monday morning began when prisoners were being served breakfast. Prisoners chased prison officials to the gate and attempted to break out. During the violence, prisoners allegedly grabbed guards' guns, with weapons falling into prisoner hands according to the Justice Minister.

One Straits Times article characterized the clashing groups as convicted (permanent) prisoners versus those under temporary detention, a framing not adopted by other outlets.

The Straits Times reported that the Sri Lanka Air Force deployed drones and a helicopter to monitor the prison during the unrest.

Large crowds of inmates' relatives gathered outside the prison on Monday. Some relatives told BBC Sinhala they had not been given information about where their relatives were or who was alive and who had died.

Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara visited the prison, expressed condolences to victims' families, and instructed authorities to investigate and submit a report. The minister announced three additional deaths beyond initial counts, raising the total death toll to 26, and stated that the entire prison was under government control.

BBC News reported that 23 prison officers and 54 inmates were still receiving treatment at the time of their reporting.

The Straits Times reported that a 22-year-old British woman has been held at Negombo Prison since her arrest in May 2025 at the international airport with 46 kilograms of kush, a highly potent form of cannabis. Prison officials confirmed no foreign inmates were affected by the riots.