Police Officer BeheadedDozens of protesters were killed in Kazakhstan in attacks on government buildings and at least a dozen police officers died, including one who was found beheaded, authorities said Thursday.
There were attempts to storm buildings overnight in the country’s largest city, Almaty, and “dozens of attackers were liquidated,” police spokeswoman Saltanat Azirbek said. She spoke on state news channel Khabar-24. The reported attempts to storm the buildings came after widespread unrest in the city on Wednesday, including seizure of the mayor’s building, which was set on fire.
State news channel Khabar-24 cited the city commandant’s office as saying Thursday that another 353 law enforcement officers were injured in addition to the 12 killed.
Many of the demonstrators who converged on the mayoral office Wednesday carried clubs and shields, according to earlier reports in Kazakh media. Tass later said the building was engulfed in flames.
The protests appear to have no identifiable leader or demands. Many of the demonstrators shouted “old man go,” an apparent reference to Nursultan Nazarbayev, the country’s first president who continued to wield enormous influence after his 2019 resignation. Nazarbayev dominated Kazakhstan’s politics and his rule was marked by a moderate cult of personality. Critics say he effectively instituted a clan system in government.
After the demonstrations spread to Nur-Sultan and Almaty, the government announced its resignation, but Tokayev said the ministers would stay in their roles until a new Cabinet is formed, making it uncertain whether the resignations will have significant impact.