Skirmishes Suggest IMU is Changing Tactics

Skirmishes this summer involving Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) fighters indicate the militants are trying new tactics during the third summer of their insurgency, according to observers and officials in Kyrgyzstan. IMU loyalists have apparently infiltrated Kyrgyzstan and settled among the local population. They are intent on conducting hit-and-run raids from within the country, aiming to embroil Kyrgyzstan in a broader regional conflict.

In contrast to previous years, this summer's raids by the IMU have occurred nearer to Kyrgyz-Uzbek border regions. A late July attack, launched by up to a dozen IMU fighters, helps illustrate the tactical shift. The insurgents, seeking to occupy a TV transmitter station, attacked a Kyrgyz post near the Chauvay, about 30 kilometers (roughly 20 miles) from the Kyrgyz town of Kyzyl-Kiya. After a firefight lasting several hours, government troops repulsed the attack. But instead of retreating to the mountains as they might have in previous years, the militants withdrew to the village Uch-Kurgan, whose inhabitants are mostly ethnic Tajiks. Apparently militants took refuge among them disguising themselves as locals, sources said. Information was not immediately available on whether either side suffered casualties.

This year's first reported encounter between the IMU and Kyrgyz government forces, occurring July 24-25 at the Gomush Pass, also provided indications that militants are operating inside the country. In that incident, a military outpost near the town of Haidarken came under attack, while other government installations near the Kyrgyz-Tajik border did not report any activity. As in the Chauvay attack, IMU militants involved in the action at Gomush Pass reportedly mingled among local civilians.

The Kyrgyz military insists that it is tightly guarding border regions. To evade the government counter-terrorism efforts, some observers suggest that IMU militants have been penetrating the Ferghana Valley, either individually or in small groups. Widespread sympathy for their cause among local inhabitants has helped IMU insurgents evade detection. Whatever the case, Kyrgyz officials quietly admit that militants are operating in the interior of Kyrgyzstan.