Mass protests have been going on in Kazakhstan for the sixth day. The country & nbsp; declared & nbsp; «critical red» level of terrorist danger, and in all regions introduced the regime of anti-terrorist operation. & Nbsp; Russian paratroopers within the framework of the CSTO mission began to work. More than 3,000 protesters were detained, dozens of people were killed. The Prosecutor General's Office has launched a pre-trial investigation into criminal cases of riots and acts of terrorism — their defendants face life imprisonment.
Details of the latest events in the neighboring republic are in the updated material of Novaya Gazeta. & Nbsp;
The number of detainees approached 4000
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan, 3811 participants in the «riots» were detained at 14:00 Moscow time, also 26 people killed and 26 wounded.
During the clashes, 216 National Guardsmen were wounded. In Kyzylorda and Taldykorgan, two 19-year-old soldiers were killed.
In particular, in Uralsk, journalist Lukpan Akhmedyarov and local activists who spoke out against the introduction of CSTO troops into Kazakhstan were detained.
President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev made an appeal to the nation
He said that the security forces were ordered to open fire to defeat without warning. Tokayev denied the possibility of negotiations and peaceful dialogue with the protesters. «What negotiations can be with criminals, murderers,» he said.
Screenshot: GosTV
The President said that most of the «militants» are foreigners. “We had to deal with armed and trained bandits, both local and foreign. It is with bandits and terrorists. Therefore, they need to be destroyed. And this will be done in the near future, ”Tokayev said.
“It is critically important to understand why the state“ slept through ”the underground preparations for terrorist attacks by the sleeping cells of militants,» the president said. According to him, “20 thousand bandits attacked Almaty alone.”
Tokayev named «free media» and «foreign figures» as accomplices of violations of law and order. “The so-called free media and foreign figures, who are far from the fundamental interests of our multinational people, play an aiding and essentially instigating role in violations of law and order. It can be said without exaggeration that all these irresponsible demagogues became accomplices in unleashing the tragedy in Kazakhstan, «he said.
Tokayev also promised to bring the «terrorists» «to the strictest responsibility.» He thanked the CSTO countries, neighboring countries and international organizations for their assistance and support. “I would like to express special gratitude to President of Russia Vladimir Putin. He very promptly and, most importantly, in a friendly way reacted warmly to my appeal, «he said.
The country has declared a «critical red» level of terrorist danger
On the territory of Kazakhstan, 70 round-the-clock checkpoints have been set up and a «critical red» level of terrorist danger has been declared, an anti-terrorist operation regime has been introduced in all regions. The President said that “counter-terrorism actions should be continued until the complete destruction of the militants.”
Tokayev chaired a meeting of the anti-terrorist headquarters. According to him, “the constitutional order has basically been restored in all regions of the country. “Local authorities are in control of the situation. But terrorists continue to use weapons and damage property of citizens, «Tokayev said.
First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Dauren Abaev told State TV that» as a result of the operation, all administrative buildings of the city were cleared of terrorists. many militants have been liquidated and detained, now their identities are being established, various versions of their belonging to an extremist organization are being worked out. ”
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 26 armed criminals were eliminated and 18 wounded. All akimats were released and taken under protection. More than 3000 protesters detained.
The security forces have cleared Almaty and Taraz from the protesters. There are clashes in Taldykorgan
In Taldykorgan, the administrative center of the Almaty region, protesters tried to seize a pre-trial detention center, but the security forces repulsed their attack. «According to unconfirmed information, a military unit and an airport have been captured,» orda.kz reports.
According to the first deputy head of the presidential administration Abaev, the security forces twice repulsed attempts to capture the Koktobe tower in Almaty. During the capture, the «militants» beheaded the cadet.
“Snipers were on their side. The main targets of the attacks were administrative buildings and the police. Terrorists attempted to go live during the seizure of TV channels, ”the official said.
KazTAG reports that a large number of wounded were hospitalized in Taraz after a night sweep, among them there are many young people. According to the newspaper, the main clashes between the protesters and the security forces took place in the park of the first president.
“There are a lot of burned cars. The door of the Gorakimat Taraz was knocked out. The Internet does not work in the city. Long queues (at least 500 people) in the morning to pay for the light. Official TV channels talk only about a couple of burnt buildings, but there are much more of them — it feels like the thugs attacked almost most of the administrative buildings of Taraz, «the newspaper's correspondent reports.
On the eve of the city, located near the border with Kyrgyzstan, there were massive protests. According to Sputnik Kazakhstan, three police buildings and about 50 police cars were burned. Mass shooting was heard in the city center.
Protesters in the center of Aktau are dismantling a yurt and calling on the crowd to go home.
The Russian military in Kazakhstan began work in the framework of the CSTO. They, together with the Kazakh security forces, took control of the Almaty airport
The Russian peacekeeping contingent, including the special forces of the Airborne Forces, continues to arrive in Kazakhstan from airfields in the Moscow, Ivanovo and Ulyanovsk regions. Part of the Russian contingent located in the country has begun to carry out tasks.
The Russian armed forces, together with the Kazakh forces, took «full control» of the airport in Almaty. The airport will not work until 21:00, according to the Vlast newspaper, or until 21:00, according to the Khabar TV channel.
The General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan has begun pre-trial investigations in criminal cases of acts of terrorism and riots
Currently, the collection and recording of traces of the crime is being carried out. In this regard, we ask the population to keep the records of the committed offenses available on video cameras and mobile phones. If there is any other information that helps to solve the crime, please contact the call center, «said the representative of the department, Rizabek Ozharov.
An interdepartmental investigation group has also been created to conduct criminal cases on the riots. Riot organizers face four to ten years in prison, participants — from three to eight years (Article 272 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
The maximum possible punishment for acts of terrorism (Article 255 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan) is from fifteen up to twenty years in prison, or life imprisonment with deprivation of citizenship.