Ethnic rioting spreading across southern Kyrgyzstan, 80 dead and 1,000 wounded
By APSunday, June 13, 2010
Ethnic rioting spreads in Kyrgyzstan, with 80 dead
OSH, Kyrgyzstan — Ethnic violence is spreading across southern Kyrgyzstan, where at least 80 people have been killed and more than 1,000 wounded.
Thousands of Uzbeks have fled their homes in Osh, the second-largest city in the Central Asian country that hosts U.S. and Russian military air bases. Much of the city has been burned.
Gunfire rang out Sunday in the city of Jalal-Abad and nearby Bazar-Kurgan village was tense.
Local political activist Asyl Tekebayev said a mob of up to 400 Uzbeks was overturning cars. He said they killed a police captain.
Residents say armed Kyrgyz men from other parts of the region are arriving in the village.
The violence is the worst since Kyrgyzstan’s president was ousted in a bloody revolt in April.
