From: Justin Burke (JBurke@sorosny.org)
Date: Thu Aug 24 2000 - 11:31:17 EDT
TEMPORARY LULL REPORTED IN KYRGYZ BORDER FIGHTING
Defense Ministry and local administration officials said on 23 August
that the situation along the Kyrgyz border with Uzbekistan
"has stabilized," RFE/RL's Bishkek bureau reported. But on
the morning of 24 August, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
fighters launched a new attack on a Kyrgyz border post in
Batken Oblast. Speaking on Uzbek television on 23 August,
President Islam Karimov again warned that "the liquidation of
the bandits...is a hard task," Reuters reported. The IMU mounted an attack in or
near the city of Andijan in eastern Uzbekistan on the night
of 23-24 August, killing one Uzbek servicemen and injuring
several. Meanwhile the Turkmen Foreign Ministry informed the
Russian ambassador in Ashgabat on 23 August that no IMU
fighters have crossed Turkmen territory en route from
Afghanistan to Uzbekistan, Interfax reported. LF
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