As authorities in Kazakhstan continue to act against people involved in recent protests and rioting, the number of people detained in the Central Asian country has risen close to 8 000, British public broadcaster BBC reports.
On Monday, January 10, the Interior Ministry stated that almost 8,000 people have been detained throughout the country amid a wave of violence. A state of emergency and a nationwide curfew are in effect, following the unrest triggered by a rise in fuel prices, turned into the worst unrest the country has seen in its 30 years of independence.
Read also: Kazakhstan announces end of unrest after 42 victims
In the Kazakh capital, Nursultan, there are obvious signs that security has been tightened, reported the BBC’s correspondent Steve Rosenberg, with the entrance to the city’s Presidential Palace barricaded with concrete blocks and military trucks.
There is a growing suggestion, according to Rosenberg, that the recent violence is linked to a power struggle within Kazakhstan’s ruling elite. The death of 44 people has been confirmed after Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated that «20,000 bandits» had attacked Almaty and that he had told security forces to «fire without warning», BBC reports.
Kazakhstan detains nearly 8 000 people, restores internet access
