Nearly 70 inmates broke out of a prison in Lebanon Saturday after smashing their cell doors and attacking prison guards, police said.

According to a police statement, five of the escaped inmates died when a car they stole while fleeing crashed into a tree during an ensuing police chase.

The mass prison break involving 69 prisoners occurred at a prison in Baabda, a suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut. Police said so far 15 inmates have been re-arrested and four of the escaped prisoners handed themselves over.

Security forces sealed off the area around the prison and were conducting a manhunt for the remaining prisoners. An investigation into the incident is underway, according to the police statement.

(AP)