The toll of the gas revolt in Kazakhstan is becoming more and more dramatic. With the repression also linked to the sending of troops from Moscow. Palaces of power stormed by demonstrators. Ѐ hard punch from the president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who addressed Putin directly. The country’s authorities have announced the start of an “anti-terrorism operation against looters and rioters conducted jointly by security forces and the army”. And they speak of “dozens of rioters eliminated”.
Gas and rubles, the Kazakh revolt against Nazarbayev’s kleptocracy and the possible Belarus effect for Putin
Jacopo Jacoboni
First Russian troops arrived
Russia has confirmed the sending of troops to stabilize the situation in Kazakhstan, upset by the riots that broke out over the dear. “A collective peacekeeping force of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) has been sent to Kazakhstan for a limited period in order to stabilize and normalize the situation”, indicates a note of the alliance released on Telegram by the spokesman of the ministry. Foreign Affairs Officer, Maria Zakharova.
The first Russian troops have already arrived according to the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), made up of six former Soviet republics led by Moscow. The Russian military is being transported to Kazakhstan by air and the contingent which has already landed has started operations.
More than a thousand injured
More than a thousand people were injured in the country in the demonstrations. The Ministry of Health announced it on public TV: “About 400 have been hospitalized and 62 are in intensive care.”
Control of Almaty airport resumed
Meanwhile, the Kazakh security forces have regained control of the Almaty airport, occupied by demonstrators. During the riots, which exploded due to a rise in fuel prices, the rioters also set fire to the presidential residence and the town hall.
Kazakhstan, stun grenades against violent protests over gas increases: government resigns
In Almaty shooting in front of the Municipality: dozens of deaths
An “intense shooting” between soldiers and armed men in front of the Almaty municipality headquarters was reported by the Tass agency. “The troops have arrived in the square and have begun to clean it of the rioters”, reports the reporter of the Russian agency, “an intense shooting is in progress”.
“Last night extremist forces tried to storm administrative buildings, the Almaty City Police Department, district offices and police stations,” Azirbek told television. Khabar-24. The spokesperson also urged residents to “avoid leaving their homes to protect their safety”.
Kazakhstan, protesters block Almaty international airport: images of devastation
The situation is, for now, calm in the Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan, where long lines are being created at ATMs in an attempt to withdraw cash, after the central bank has suspended operations. He reports it Tass. The streets are crowded but no protests are underway, the correspondent of the Russian agency reports, the internet is still blocked and the police patrol the city.
Central bank of Kazakhstan has suspended the operations of banks
But the Kazakh central bank has suspended the operations of the country’s banks and stock exchanges in order to protect “the health and life of financial sector personnel” while “counter-terrorism operations” are underway to stop the unrest in the country. The spokesman Olzhas Ramazanov reports. The stop is currently only scheduled for today.