Supporters of Kyrgyzstan's deposed president broke into a regional government office in the southern city of Jalalabad on Apr.17 in a sign of persistent tension in the Central Asian state.
Witnesses saw a crowd of some 500 people massing outside the building demanding the return of Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who was toppled in a violent revolt on April 7 and fled the country.
Local officials could not be reached by telephone and witnesses said no police could be seen in central Jalalabad, a city at the heart of Bakiyev’s tribal stronghold in the south.
Bakiyev fled to neighbouring Kazakhstan on Thursday in a deal brokered by the United States, Russia and Kazakhstan after a week of tension threatened to boil over into civil war in the volatile ex-Soviet republic.
The provisional government, led by ex-foreign minister Roza Otunbayeva, says all parts of the country are under its control.
But witnesses said the crowd in Jalalabad hurled stones at Bolotbek Sherniyazov, the interim interior minister, after he arrived in the city to lead a security operation to arrest a number of Bakiyev loyalists. He was whisked away unscathed.
Kyrgyzstan, a mountainous Muslim country of 5.3 million, hosts a crucial U.S. air base and the turmoil disrupted U.S. military flights to operations in nearby Afghanistan for days.
Bakiyev has not said where he could fly on to, and there were conflicting reports on Saturday about his whereabouts. Kazakh officials said they could not comment on Bakiyev’s plans.
U.S. MILITARY BASE
He and his brother have been accused of ordering troops to open fire on protesters after anti-Bakiyev demonstrations exploded into a night of gunfire and chaos on April 7.
At least 84 people died in the violence. Witnesses and Reuters reporters said protesters were armed and fired back, and some civilians may have died in the ensuing crossfire.
Azimbek Beknazarov, an interim vice premier in charge of security, said arrest warrants had been issued for a dozen Bakiyev allies and family members including his brother Zhanybek, the former head of the presidential guards.
"He (Zhanybek) has not surrendered… there will not be any use of force," said Beknazarov, who indicated the new leaders knew where Zhanybek was. "We will use only diplomacy."
The fate of the U.S. air base, a crucial transit point for U.S. and NATO troops travelling in and out of Afghanistan, has been thrown into question after the uprising.
For now, Otunbayeva says it will abide by all agreements covering the U.S. base and allow the transit centre lease to be extended automatically for another year this summer.
Yet some hawks in her government have called for the eviction of U.S. troops, accusing the United States of ignoring corruption and human rights abuses in order to keep the base.
Russia also maintains a base in Kyrgyzstan and is uneasy with the presence of U.S. troops in a country it considers as part of its traditional post-Soviet sphere of influence.
Beknazarov said 200 criminal cases had been opened to investigate crimes committed under Bakiyev. The new government accuses Bakiyev of corruption and nepotism, as well as killings of journalists and politicians.
Beknazarov said the government was investigating allegations that Bakiyev had taken $200 million out of the country through local banks as he fled the capital.
