MANILA, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- A jail guard and five inmates were killed during a southern Philippine jailbreak before dawn and the ensuing manhunt on Wednesday, authorities said.
Some gunmen, clad in black suits and armed with high-powered firearms, stormed a jail around 1 a.m. on Wednesday in Kidapawan City in North Cotabato province, apparently trying to free some inmates serving sentences for murder and illegal drugs, according to witnesses.
A jail guard was killed and an inmate was injured when the gunmen stormed the jail and freed at least 158 inmates.
Five more inmates were killed in the subsequent manhunt to re-arrest the escaped criminals, according to media and jail officials.
Some of the so-called "high profile" detainees who escaped include alleged members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters that carried out bombings in the Mindanao region, authorities said.
Felix Capalla, one of the jail leaders, said: "Twenty jail guards fought the heavily armed raiders but were overpowered by the attackers."
He said the 20 jail guards were armed only with pistols and Armalite rifles while the raiders were armed with high-powered Barret 50-caliber sniper rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the government appeals "for calm and sobriety."
Ismael D. Sueno, secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, said the Philippine government has secured the help of the largest Muslim rebel group in the country, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), in recapturing the inmates at large.
