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Tajikistan: Several Killed In ISIS Attack

Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon was on a visit to Switzerland when the attack happened. AFP
Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon was on a visit to Switzerland when the attack happened. AFP
    Asharq Al-Awsat
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Tajikistan: Several Killed In ISIS Attack

Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon was on a visit to Switzerland when the attack happened. AFP
Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon was on a visit to Switzerland when the attack happened. AFP

Seventeen people were killed in Tajikistan on Wednesday in an attack on a border post that officials blamed on ISIS group militants who had crossed over from Afghanistan.

Tajik security forces killed 15 when an armed and masked gang attacked the checkpoint on the border with Uzbekistan.

A soldier and a policeman also died in the fighting, officials said, AFP reported.

The clashes near the Tajik capital Dushanbe broke out as the country prepared to celebrate Constitution Day on Wednesday and the country's long-serving President Emomali Rakhmon was on a visit to Switzerland.

Rakhmon is also expected to visit Paris later this week to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron as part of a rare European visit.

After questioning several detained militants, the Tajik border guard service said the men were members of the ISIS group who had crossed the border from Afghanistan on Sunday.

"All (of them) are members of the so-called terrorist group 'ISIS'", the border guard service said in a statement.

The interior ministry released pictures of several bodies in black clothes lying next to burnt-out vehicles at the scene of the clash.

The militants crossed the border in the south of Tajikistan and apparently trekked to the site of the attack on the border with Uzbekistan, which is around 200 kilometres away.

The armed gang of around 20 masked people attacked the Ishkobod border post located some 50 kilometres (30 miles) west of the Tajikistan capital after 3 am local time Wednesday, the interior ministry said.

"As a result of an operation conducted by law enforcement forces, 15 members of an armed criminal group were neutralized and four more attackers detained," stated.

The country's border guards said separately that five attackers had been detained.

According to AFP, tens of thousands of people were killed in Tajikistan during a five-year civil war in the 1990s.

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Kenya Anniversary Protests Turn Violent, 8 Dead

At least 300 were injured in Nairobi. SIMON MAINA / AFP
At least 300 were injured in Nairobi. SIMON MAINA / AFP
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Kenya Anniversary Protests Turn Violent, 8 Dead

At least 300 were injured in Nairobi. SIMON MAINA / AFP
At least 300 were injured in Nairobi. SIMON MAINA / AFP

Marches in Kenya to mark a year since massive anti-government demos turned violent on Wednesday, with eight killed and at least 400 injured as protesters held running battles with police, who flooded Nairobi's streets with tear gas and sealed off government buildings with barbed wire.

Initially peaceful commemorations descended into chaos as scattered groups ripped up flagstones to throw projectiles at security forces and chanted for the resignation of President William Ruto, reported AFP.

The marches had been called for the anniversary of massive protests last year against tax rises that left at least 60 people dead and peaked when a huge crowd stormed parliament on June 25.

"We are marching against police brutality, against oppression by the government, against high taxation, everything that is going wrong in this country," said Anthony, 25, who was also selling flags and did not want to give his full name.

A coalition of rights groups said eight people died as protests were held in 23 counties.

"At least 400 others were treated, with 83 of them referred to specialized treatment for serious injuries," the coalition, which includes Amnesty International and the Kenyan Medical Association, said in a statement.

A hospital source in Matuu, a town around 100 kilometers (65 miles) from Nairobi, earlier told AFP that two people had died from gunshot wounds there, with local media reporting that police had opened fire.

The government ordered TV and radio stations to halt live coverage of the protests, which gained momentum beyond the capital, including in the port city Mombasa.

NetBlocks, a global internet tracker, said social media platform Telegram had been restricted.

"We are here as the young generation. We want a complete overhaul of the system, the system is rotten, the system is rogue," said protester Florence Achala in Nairobi.

'Goons'

Anger has flared over police brutality, particularly after a teacher was killed in custody earlier this month.

A group of peaceful protesters was attacked last week by a gang of motorbike-riding "goons", as they are known in Kenya, armed with whips and clubs and working in tandem with the police.

Western embassies in Kenya, including those of Britain, Germany and the United States, criticized in a joint statement "the use of hired 'goons' to infiltrate or disrupt peaceful gatherings".

The "goons" were not clearly present on Wednesday but police used large amounts of tear gas and water cannons as they attempted to push back groups of protesters.

Analyst and lawyer Javas Bigambo told AFP he was worried political groups would exploit the volatile mood to foster violence.

"There is nothing good to celebrate about the events that happened last year," he said. "If we were serious about commemorating June 25th, it should be in solemnity, prayer and restraint."

Disillusioned

There is deep resentment against Ruto, who came to power in 2022 promising rapid economic progress.

Many are disillusioned by continued stagnation, corruption and high taxes, even after last year's protests forced Ruto to cancel the unpopular finance bill.

His government has been at pains to avoid direct tax rises this year.

But the frequent disappearances of government critics -- rights groups have counted more than 80 since last year's protests, with dozens still missing -- have led many to accuse Ruto of returning Kenya to the dark days of its dictatorship in the 1980s and 1990s.