Two Kyrgyz Citizens Killed After Uzbek Border Guards Open Fire

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Uzbek border guards used firearms against two Kyrgyz citizens, resulting in their deaths, the Information and Communications Department of the Border Service of Kyrgyzstan’s State Committee for National Security reported.

On 25 August, local police received a missing persons report concerning two residents of the village of Aygyr-Zhal in the Chatkal district of Jalal-Abad region.

On 28 August, the Uzbek border service informed that on 15 August, two unidentified individuals were found inside Uzbekistan near the junction of the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. According to the Uzbek side, when an attempt was made to detain them, the individuals resisted and failed to comply with orders, prompting the use of firearms. Both sustained fatal injuries.

On 31 August, relatives of the missing Kyrgyz citizens arrived in Uzbekistan and confirmed their identities.

Today, through the Baymak border crossing, the bodies of the two Kyrgyz citizens were handed over to Kyrgyz authorities and delivered to the Kerben morgue for examination.

In addition, the heads of the border services of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan agreed to conduct a joint investigation at the site of the incident starting September 2.

The Uzbek side also expressed readiness to return the belongings of the deceased, including three horses and a tent.