The Worst Prisons on Earth

Diyarbakir Prison in southeastern Turkey was built in 1980. Since then it has imprisoned many of that nation's most violent criminals which is why it is one of the worst in the world. This prison is known for dishing out not just physical torture to it's inmates but mental as well. The are two sections within the facility; the E-Type which has a capacity of 744 prisoners and the D-Type with a 688 capacity however both currently hold more than it should.


La Sabeneta is located in Venezuela and is considered one of the world's worst prisons. It is one of the most brutal correctional facilities in South America which is why inmates want to leave as soon as they are sent here. There are many diseases which run rampant inside and there is little to no care given to the inmates. The combination of that and the facility being understaffed causes many violent crimes to occur inside of it.




The ADX Florence Supermax Prison is said to house the most dangerous criminals in the United States. Located in Fremont County, Colorado it has a population of just 439 inmates currently but has the tightest security in the country. Many inmates here commit suicide due to the complete isolation from everyone and everything including other inmates as well as guards. The Alcatraz of the Rockies first opened its doors in 1994.

The Tadmor Prison is located in Tadmor which is in the desserts of Syria 200 kilometers from Damascus. The prison originally was meant to be a military detention facility, however during the 1980's they began housing all sorts of criminals inside. In 1980 President Hafez al-Assad order the killing of all prisoners inside which left the death total near 2,400. The prison was shut down in 2001 however its doors opened back up in 2011

The Carandiru Penitentiary is located in San Paulo, Brazil and first opened in 1920. It did not house its first criminals until 1956 and eventually closed down in 2002. In 1992 there was huge riot/massacre which occurred inside of it where 111 prisoners were killed due to the uprising.Among other major problems within this prison which held up to 8,000 inmates at a time was a huge AIDS epidemic, which is another reason it was destroyed.



Gitarama Central Prison is located in Rwanda and known around the world as one of the worst prisons to be inside of. The conditions here are so bad that some prisoners resort to eating each others flesh just to stay alive themselves. Many prisoners who have been incarcerated in it describe it as 'hell on earth' which speaks volumes for its conditions. It was originally designed to house just 400 prisoners however for whatever reason the population jumped to nearly 7,000 in the 1990's.



Located in Lima, Peru, San Juan de Lurigancho is known by many as the toughest prison in South America. The prison has quite the over-population problem as it was constructed to hold just 2,500 prisoners but houses over 7,000 inmates to date. The environment inside is very lax which means all sorts of crimes occur including selling of drugs, rape and murder. The fact that the guards aren't truly attentive to what is going on makes this one of the world's worst prisons.



San Quentin is not only California's oldest state prison but it is also one of the most dangerous. It first opened in 1852 and currently it is the largest U.S. holding facility for male death row inmates. There is a gas chamber still inside of the prison but since 1996 all of its death row inmates have been given lethal injections. It's current population is just under 4,000 inmates.



Alcatraz may just be the most famous prison in the entire world but it is also one of the worst to have ever held inmates captive. Located in San Francisco, California, "The Rock" as it was commonly referred to opened as a federal correctional facility in 1933 and closed its doors a jail in 1963.



Known as the Alcatraz of Russia, Petak Island Prison is a living hell. Each inmate is locked inside of a maximum security cell for most of the day where they have complete isolation from other prisoners and guards as well. many of the inmates here die due to the freezing temperatures from the nearby water and falling snow. The prison is isolated by Russia's White Lake and is known to hold some of the nation's most dangerous prisoners.



Butyrka Prison is located in Moscow, Russia and is a very dangerous place. The overcrowding inside of this jail is so rampant that there are at times 100 prisoners placed inside of a cell which was only intended to hold 10. Diseases such as AIDS and tuberculosis are extremely common.It is known as the largest prison in Russia and at one time held in excess to 20,000 prisoners.



The Kamiti Maximum Security Prison is located in Nairobi, Kenya and is a very rough place to be imprisoned. There have long been rumors and complaints that sodomy and inmates being beaten to death occurs on a daily basis within these walls. There are also epidemics of malnutrition, cholera, and ulcers which are all part of everyday life here. Many of the inmates here are political prisoners which means that there are no holds barred when it comes to what goes on inside.



Attica Correctional Facility is located in New York and is one of the worst prisons in the world. It is a maximum security level prison which detains many violent offenders. It was constructed in 1930 and and since then there have been several riots which have occurred there. In 1971 there was a huge riot which took place where the 2,200 inmates overtook the 33 staff members that worked there.