Kazakh President Qassem-Jumert Tokayev said today (Friday) that he had authorized law enforcement to open fire on the rebels and protesters and shoot to kill, after violent demonstrations began in the country in recent days.
In a speech broadcast to the nation, Kasim-Jumart Tokayev accused the boycott cell of the "terrorists and militants" of what he said, saying he had approved the use of deadly force against them.
"Those who do not surrender will be eliminated," Tokayev said.
The president ruled out any possibility of negotiations with the protesters, as proposed in several other countries.
"Nonsense. What kind of negotiations can be conducted with criminals and murderers?"
Said Tokaev.
President of Kazakhstan, Qassem-Jumert Tokayev, Photo: AFP
Kazakhstan's Interior Ministry reported today that 26 protesters were killed during the violent incidents, 18 were injured and more than 3,000 people were arrested.
A total of 18 police officers were reported killed and more than 700 injured.
Videos posted last night on social media showed Russian soldiers landing and spreading on Kazakhstan soil for the first time.
Protesters posted on social media that Russian forces had already joined local police and military in an attempt to quell the riots in the country.
Clashes on the streets of Almaty between the army and protesters, Photo: Reuters
Kazakhstan is currently experiencing the worst protests since the country gained independence thirty years ago.
The masses, angry at the cost of living and the political stalemate in the country, also stormed other government buildings in the country’s largest city as well as other cities, especially in the west of the country, where protests began.
Due to checks, the internet across the country was blocked for use, and two airports were closed, including one in Almaty, the largest city in the country.
Russian paratroopers board a plane that will take them to Kazakhstan, Photo: API.
Kazakhstan: Violent demonstrations in the city of Almaty, Photo: AP
The protest began last week in the country's western Mangistau province, near the Caspian Sea, where citizens and oil industry workers demonstrated in protest of the authorities' decision to raise fuel prices.
The protest spread from labor camps and small towns to the provincial capital of Actao, where hundreds marched in protest on the city’s main streets.
Almaty City Hall, Photo: Reuters
Blood in the streets of Almaty, Photo: AFP
Russian military forces in Moscow, preparing to provide assistance to Kazakhstan, Photo: API
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