Both ot the prisoners involved have now been relocated and will also be examined by prison medical staff

SPS statement

A statement from the SPS said: "We are pleased to announce that the incident at Aberdeen prison has been negotiated to a peaceful conclusion.

"The officer who was being held against his will has been released and despite the distressing nature of this incident, appears to be safe and well.

"He will be examined by medical staff prior to being escorted home.

"Both ot the prisoners involved have now been relocated and will also be examined by prison medical staff.

"A police investigation is now ongoing so it would be inappropriate to comment further."

It is not known what the prisoners' demands were or whether any weapons were involved.

'Peaceful protest'

A spokesman for the Scottish Prison Service said earlier: "We can confirm that a prison officer is being held against his will by two prisoners.

"The prisoners have stated that this is a peaceful protest."

The last serious incident at Craiginches involving a prisoner and a prison officer was in April 1998.

Craiginches holds about 200 prisoners

On that occasion an officer needed emergency surgery to throat wounds following an attack.

The prisoner was ordered to be detained indefinitely at Carstairs Psychiatric Hospital.

Craiginches currently holds 201 inmates, most of them local, and employs 159 staff.

Some are prisoners on remand, while others are adult males serving sentences of up to four years.

There is also a small wing for adult female prisoners serving sentences of less than six months.

Declined to comment

The prison, which was built in 1890, is also used for holding people awaiting deportation.

Earlier, a spokesman for the Prison Officers Association Scotland declined to comment on the incident.

A spokeswoman for Grampian Fire Brigade said one of its appliances had been on stand-by outside the prison throughout the night but had since returned to headquarters.

Grampian Police said it was aware of the incident, although none of the force's officers was involved.