Human Rights Watch says Kyrgyzstan’s army abetted ethnic violence against minority Uzbeks

HRW says Kyrgyz army involved in ethnic violence

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — A prominent rights groups says Kyrgyzstan’s armed forces abetted and may even have actively taken part in deadly violence by ethnic Kyrgyz mobs against the minority Uzbek community.

The report released Monday by New York-based Human Rights Watch is the most ambitious attempt yet at an independent survey of June’s clashes. The violence claimed at least 370 lives and sent hundreds of thousands fleeing from their homes to neighboring Uzbekistan.

Human Rights Watch says many witnesses reported seeing individuals in camouflage attacking ethnic Uzbeks and using armored vehicles to remove improvised roadblocks barring entry into Uzbek neighborhoods.

The group has called on the Kyrgyz government to probe the extent of military involvement in the unrest.