Inmates at a prison rioted during a search for illegal drugs on Saturday and took about 24 wardens hostage. Prison authorities are negotiating with the inmates at the Mach prison in Balochistan province where about 1,100 inmates are crowded into a jail built for 600, a prison official said.

"The inmates turned violent when being searched. They have taken control of the jail and are also holding about 24 jail officials," provincial interior minister Furqan Bahadur told Reuters.

Copyright Reuters, 2007