Astana: Kazakhstan, an energy-rich nation with a population of about 20 million, has been struggling with hopelessness for the past several days. Due to this, 160 people have lost their lives so far. About 6000 people have been arrested in a country with a vast area of Central Asia. Due to the turmoil that has been going on for the last week, many foreigners have also been arrested for spreading unrest.
According to information received on the government-run information portal, about 164 people are feared to have died in the riots, including 103 people who died in the country’s largest city Almaty. From which it is clear that there have been very intense clashes between the opponents and the defense parties.
According to the new figures, which have not been confirmed by any official source, the death toll will increase drastically. Earlier official sources had said that 26 armed criminals were killed, while 16 defense officers also lost their lives due to these riots. But by Sunday this statement of the government had disappeared.
The Ministry of Health told Russian and Kazak media that false information had been published, but has since officially neither denied previous information nor provided new figures. After this, an emergency meeting was called under the leadership of President Kasim Jomart Tokayev, after which a statement was issued by the President. It said that about 5800 people, including foreign nationals, have been arrested for questioning. The President said in his statement that the situation in the country is now stable.
Question and answer on the price of oil
A week ago, a fire broke out in the country due to the increase in oil prices, which spread throughout the country, including Almaty, the economic center of Kazakhstan. Where the police used bullets to control the riots. According to media reports, about 100 businesses and banks were attacked and looted, with more than 400 vehicles damaged in arson incidents. According to the news published in NDTV, while giving information to the local media, the ministry said that there was a loss of about $ 199 million in the riots.
At the same time, according to the report, peace seems to be established in Almaty, in between the police fire in the air to prevent people from coming to the central square of the city. At the same time, the supermarket was opened amid the lack of food. Not only this, the former security chief has been arrested in Kazakhstan on suspicion of treason. Along with this, there is also news of the arrest of former Prime Minister Karim Massimov, a partner of former Kazakhstan leader Nur Sultan Nazarbayev, amid speculation of a power struggle in the former Soviet nation. The National Security Committee (KNB), a domestic intelligence agency, has announced that Massimov has been arrested on suspicion of treason.
America criticized the order to shoot
Tokayev said in his statement that about 20,000 armed dacoits had attacked Almaty, orders were given to shoot the army to bring them under control. At the same time, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the shooting order and called for its cancellation. While reports believe that most of the people’s anger was directly reflected on Nazarbayev, who had been ruling the country since 1989 before handing overpower. Critics accuse him that he and his family have acquired huge wealth at the expense of ordinary citizens and control it from behind the scenes.
Foreign interference
Although the complete picture of anarchy is not yet clear, foreign countries have also reacted to this incident. Expressing grief over the incident, Pope Francis has appealed to settle it peacefully. At the same time, Tokayev has thanked the Moscow-led Joint Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for sending troops to deal with this unrest. Also, Tokayev has described the deployment of this army as temporary. But Blinken said in the tone of a warning that due to this military force, Kazakhstan could be in trouble in the future. He said that we should learn a lesson from history that if Russians have come into your house, it is very difficult to drive them out.
