Kyrgyzstan: Militants were Suicide Bombers, Officials Allege

Investigators recovered a large cache of weapons, masks and bomb-making materials from the scene of a shootout between Kyrgyz special forces and alleged Islamic militants.

An official statement issued June 24 by the State Committee for National Security suggested the materials found could have been intended for suicide bombing missions. Authorities also found Kalashnikov assault rifles, ammunition, grenades and hand guns at the scene of the confrontation.

Five alleged members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan died in a firefight with Kyrgyz security forces in the early hours of June 23. One officer died and another was seriously wounded during the operation in the southern city of Jalal-abad. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

The militants were reportedly trained in Pakistan, according to the official statement. "There's no panic in Jalal-abad, we don't have any worries here, but we should punish and break members of Islamic groups," Abdymalik Bektemirov, the coordinator of the Jalalabad office of the Ak Zhol Party, told EurasiaNet on June 24.