Islamabad, July 13: Two prisoners killed their cellmate on death row in a maximum security prison in Pakistan, a prison official said today. The killing at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad, occurred after a heated exchange among three prisoners, deputy jail superintendent Mohammed Ayub said. He said Azhar Mahmood, 23, was strangled by his two cellmates after he fell asleep yesterday.

Ayub was strangled with an amulet that he wore around his neck, Ayub said. Such amulets, often inscribed with verses from Islam's holy book, the Quran, are a common accessory. The three men in the cell had been sentenced to death on murder charges but were appealing their sentences. It wasn't clear whether they had been facing death on the same charge or separate charges.

A new charge of murder has been brought against the two cellmates, Ayub said.

Bureau Report