Thousands Of Refugees Flee Ethnic Violence In Southern Kyrgy
- 14 years ago
Uzbekistan Television has obtained and distributed dramatic amateur video footage of thousands of refugees fleeing ethnic violence in south Kyrgyzstan. The refugees surge across no-man's land towards the border crossing into Uzbekistan.
The footage, which was shot on Saturday, shows crowds of several thousand refugees who have already left Kyrgyz territory. They are waiting to cross into Uzbek territory from the no-man's land zone at the Yurkishlak border crossing.
Thousands of people, mainly women and children, have fled the the Kyrgyz city of Osh. The ancient Silk Road city has been the scene of bloody ethnic violence for almost a week, especially in Uzbek neighborhoods. At least 187 people around the region are confirmed killed.
Many woman and children are visible in the crowd. The footage shows Uzbek border guards handing very young children through the surging crowd to controlled groups of refugees at the edges of no-man's land. Other guards pull back barbed wire barriers as the crowd streams towards the border crossing.
The events in the south have prompted an estimated 100,000 refugees to flee into Uzbekistan, most facing severe water and food shortages.
Struggling with the influx, on Monday Uzbekistan partially sealed the frontier. Hundreds of refugees remain stranded.
The footage, which was shot on Saturday, shows crowds of several thousand refugees who have already left Kyrgyz territory. They are waiting to cross into Uzbek territory from the no-man's land zone at the Yurkishlak border crossing.
Thousands of people, mainly women and children, have fled the the Kyrgyz city of Osh. The ancient Silk Road city has been the scene of bloody ethnic violence for almost a week, especially in Uzbek neighborhoods. At least 187 people around the region are confirmed killed.
Many woman and children are visible in the crowd. The footage shows Uzbek border guards handing very young children through the surging crowd to controlled groups of refugees at the edges of no-man's land. Other guards pull back barbed wire barriers as the crowd streams towards the border crossing.
The events in the south have prompted an estimated 100,000 refugees to flee into Uzbekistan, most facing severe water and food shortages.
Struggling with the influx, on Monday Uzbekistan partially sealed the frontier. Hundreds of refugees remain stranded.