[UDPATE] “Thousands of terrified Uzbeks fled for the border Saturday, a day after troops fired on demonstrators demanding more freedom in this tightly controlled former Soviet republic. President Islam Karimov said troops were forced to shoot after demonstrators tried to break through an advancing security cordon.” (LA Times)
Update [2005-5-14 11:1:7 by susanhbu]: “Anti-government protesters stormed a prison early Friday morning, releasing thousands of inmates and fueling riots in which groups of armed men took over government buildings across the city before troops regained control in an afternoon crackdown. The protests began earlier in the week, with the prosecution of 23 popular local businessmen on charges of being part of a group that supports jailed Islamic leader Akram Yuldashev … [A] human rights activist witnessed as many as 200 people killed in a fusillade launched against a crowd that was approaching a military compound.” (Slate‘s news roundup)
Earlier, I missed Oui’s excellent diary on this. From the AP/LAT: “ANDIJAN, Uzbekistan — Soldiers opened fire on thousands of protesters in eastern Uzbekistan today after demonstrators stormed a jail to free 23 men accused of Islamic extremism. At least 50 people may have been killed in clashes with police and security forces …” More below:
Protesters fell to the ground as the troops surrounded the crowd of some 4,000 and started shooting outside the city’s administration building, which had been seized by the demonstrators. An Associated Press reporter saw 10 people who apparently had been hit, including at least one dead, and participants in the rally said two more had been killed.<P.As soldiers continued shooting with what sounded like large-caliber gunfire and automatic weapons, one man sobbed, "Oh, my son! He's dead!"
Uzbekistan is a key U.S. ally in the war on terrorism, providing an air base to support military operations in neighboring Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. But the closer ties with Washington have drawn increased international attention to widespread human rights abuses in the former Soviet republic, whose authoritarian government is seen as one of the most repressive in the region. …President Islam Karimov rushed to Andijan, where the government said it remained in control despite the chaos, although it blocked foreign news reports of the clashes for its domestic audience. Neighboring Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, which share the Fergana Valley, sealed their borders.
