Kyrgyzstan: Uzbek Guards Murder Kyrgyz Citizen, Establish Unilateral Border Post

Uzbek police and special agents are patrolling a disputed village in Kyrgyzstan's Jalalabad Province after unilaterally setting up a border on the main street.

Angry villagers in Chek, still reeling from an earlier incursion during which they say Uzbek military personnel ransacked Kyrgyz homes, have appealed to the Kyrgyz government to intervene, the Akipress new agency reported on June 8.

Separately, Uzbek border guards shot dead a 19-year-old ethnic Uzbek Kyrgyz citizen who allegedly strayed on to Uzbek territory on June 7. The youth apparently tried to run to Kyrgyzstan after warning shots were fired, but was dragged back into Uzbekistan, media reports say. The incident happened near Sura-Tash, a village near Kara-Suu in Osh.

The Kyrgyz Border Service confirms the incident took place. Uzbek authorities reportedly have rebuffed efforts by Kyrgyz officials to hold a meeting to discuss the incident. The youth died from gunshot wounds in an Uzbek hospital, a Border Service press release adds.

Elsewhere, the build-up of Kyrgyz border personnel on the Kyrgyz-Tajik border, which began on June 4, is directly related to the deteriorating situation with Uzbekistan, the deputy chairman of the Kyrgyz Border Service, Cholponbek Turusbekov, told Akipress. "By taking these measures, the Kyrgyz Border Service has switched and is continuing to switch to a heightened form of guarding not only the Kyrgyz-Uzbek, but also the Kyrgyz-Tajik state borders," Turusbekov said.