The ongoing situation in Kazakhstan has gone from bad to worse, with the death toll rising significantly, and thousands now in detention.
At least 164 people have been killed so far in the protests in Kazakhstan in the past week, and more than 2,000 have been injured. Most of those killed were in Almaty, the largest city and the former Kazakh capital. The figures were reported by the health ministry on the state news channel Khabar-24, and a huge jump in deaths since the previous total that was stated by government authorities at 26.
On Monday, the Interior Ministry said that almost 8,000 were detained throughout the country.
The rising death toll comes following a public statement made by President Tokayev telling police and military to “kill without warning,” and to shoot and kill protestors.
Among the security forces suppressing protests are Russian “peacekeeping” troopers, which arrived in the country towards the end of last week as part of a Russian-led military alliance into the country and at the request of Tokayev.
Security forces say that they killed Almaty rioters while attempting to restore peace.
The Information Ministry on Sunday attempted to downplay the death toll, claiming only 44 were confirmed. But this was after government officials retracted an earlier statement that was posted on an official government channel on the social media app Telegram, listing the death toll at 164.
Protests began at the start of the new year on January 2 in the oil-rich area of western Kazakhstan after a sharp rise in fuel prices. The situation escalated quickly, with protests expanding to overall calls for political reform.
The government shut down the internet for days. Internet services resumed in Almaty following a five-day blackout.
The country remains in a declared state of emergency, and under a nationwide curfew.
Be the first to comment