Friday, January 07, 2022

How the Deadly Unrest turned Kazakhstan into a Geopolitical Flashpoint | DW News

Jan 7, 2022 • Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Friday declared that constitutional order was "mainly restored" after the unprecedented unrest in recent days. Protests had erupted over surging fuel prices and escalated into an uprising against corruption. Violent clashes between protesters and security forces left dozens of demonstrators and forces killed. In a televised address on Friday, Tokayev said he had given security forces orders to open fire without warning if there were further disturbances. The president made reference to "20,000 bandits" who had attacked the country's largest city of Almaty and vowed to destroy them.

Authorities said there have also been 3,000 arrests, according to state broadcaster Khabar 24 citing the interior ministry. Security has been bolstered across the country, with 70 checkpoints operating around the clock. On Thursday, authorities said 18 security personnel had been killed, including one who had been beheaded.