At least 1 killed, 16 injured in new protests in Kyrgyzstan
19/05/201014:27
MOSCOW, May 19 (RIA Novosti) - At least one person was killed and another 16 injured on Wednesday in new clashes in the ex-Soviet Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, spokeswoman for the Kyrgyz interim Health Ministry Svetlana Baytikova said.
Up to 3,000 supporters of ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev took part in the protests in the southern Kyrgyz town of Jalalabad.
The protesters were demanding a judicial inquiry into the actions of the leader of the local Uzbek community, Kadyzhan Batyrov, who they accuse of setting fire to houses belonging to relatives of Bakiyev and encouraging his supporters to use guns during uprisings in Jalalabad's central square on May 14.
Eyewitnesses said gunshots were heard near the University of Peoples' Friendship, which is headed by Batyrov. They said police and Special Forces officers, who initially cordoned off the university buildings, retreated for their own safety.
The Kyrgyz interim government fears ethnic conflicts in the region because of the large numbers of ethnic Uzbeks residing there.
Kyrgyz interim Prime Minister Roza Otunbayeva said the situation in the south of Kyrgyzstan had deteriorated again.
Kyrgyzstan's interim government led by Roza Otunbayeva took power on April 7 amid violent protests in which more than 80 people died. President Bakiyev fled the country and resigned.
Since then, Kyrgyzstan has seen two waves of riots between supporters of the deposed leader and backers of the interim government, in which a total of seven people were killed and more than 90 were injured.
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