Tuesday, July 17, 2012 -
A skirmish on the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border on Tuesday caused the death of at least one Kyrgyz border guard and one Uzbek guard.
Two other Kyrgyz citizens were injured in the crossfire in the southern Jalalabad province.
The skirmish erupted over the issue of Kyrgyz laborers preparing a road near the border, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported on Tuesday.
Locals were repairing the road near the Bulak-Bashi village, despite being warned by Kyrgyz guards that the road went through an unmarked area. Uzbek border guards then approached the locals, commanding them to stop the work.
“Local residents responded aggressively to these demands, and Uzbek border guards used a weapon,” Kyrgyz border services spokeswoman Gulmira Borubayeva told the KyrTAG news agency.
“The border guards on the Kyrgyz side were forced to use weapons in response.”
No comment has been issued from the Uzbek side.
A meeting between the head of Kyrgyz security agency GKNB and his Uzbek counterpart is being scheduled, Borubayeva said.