Leftist rebels freed 131 prison inmates, including five held for political reasons, in an attack on a town in northern El Salvador, military officials said.
Members of the leftist guerrilla group, Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front, on Sunday attacked military installations and the prison in Ilobasco, a town 35 miles northeast of San Salvador in Cabanas province, the military said.The two-hour attack ended when the 20 guards defending the prison abandoned their positions. Two were wounded, officials said.
A military bulletin said that Jose Flores, 77, who had served five years of a 10-year term, did not escape. All the rest of the prisoners left with the rebels.