Chaos continues in Kazakhstan, especially in the streets of the country's largest city, Almaty, with thousands of citizens clashing with police protesting against rising fuel prices, in a country that is 15th in the world in gas reserves. As the BBC reported, there is no internet in the country, while videos circulated on Twitter show the repressive forces retreating in the face of the protesters' momentum.
However, as reported by Agence France-Presse, men in police uniforms were also seen leaving their helmets and shields and joining the protesters. "They are coming with us!" said one woman while hugging another protester.
Angry protests in the former Soviet republic, joining demonstrators and police, erupted on Sunday after liquefied natural gas prices rose in the western city of Janaozen, then spread to the large regional city of Aktau and then to Almaty, leading to the resignation of the government earlier today.
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Kazakhstan's President Kashim-Tomart Tokayev accepted the resignation of the government overnight and also declared a state of emergency in the Mangistau region, in which Janaozen is located where the protests started, as well as the Almaty region.
Deputy Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov took over as interim Prime Minister until the formation of a new government. Initially, the government tried to reassure the protesters by accepting a reduction in the price of LPG: a litre now costs 50 tenge (€0.1) compared to 120 at New Year's Day.
The Mangistau region depends on liquefied natural gas, which is the main fuel for cars, and any increase in its price causes an increase in the price of food products, which have already become more expensive since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
The city's police chief announced that police, National Guard and army units are involved in the security operation in the city as the situation in Almaty remains tense, the second day of clashes between protesters and security forces.
At noon, a group of protesters stormed the Almaty city hall, managing to infiltrate the building's interior, despite flash bombs and tear gas fired at them by police, a French AFP reporter said.
Reuters had earlier reported, citing images uploaded directly to Instagram by a blogger in Kazakhstan, that a fire had broken out in the Almaty mayor's office and that gunfire could be heard nearby.
Kazakhstan's Interior Ministry said more than 200 protesters were arrested for "violating public order."
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kazakhstan can solve its problems on its own and that it is important that there is no outside interference, Russian news agency RIA reported.
"Kazakhstan has not asked Russia for help in dealing with the protests that caused its government to resign today," the agency added, citing Peskov's remarks.
Russia is highly sensitive to causing unrest in the former Soviet republics, which it considers part of its sphere of influence; and has in the past accused the West of fomenting uprisings in countries such as Georgia and Ukraine.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said it was closely monitoring the situation in Kazakhstan and that it was counting "on its normalization as soon as possible."
Source: Proto Thema
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