LOC13:46
10:46 GMT
MOSCOW, June 14 (KUNA) -- The death toll of Kyrgyzstan's interethnic
clashes has risen to 117, Itar-tass News Agency reported on Monday.
The agency quoted sources in the Kyrgyz Health Care Ministry saying that
the number of people who died from injuries sustained as a result of riots in
the Osh and Jalal-Abad regions in the south of the country has reached 117.
"By this hour, the death toll in the Osh and Jalal-Abad regions has risen
to 117," the ministry told Interfax on Monday.
All in all, 1,485 people sought medical help, 779 of them were hospitals in
both regions, the ministry said.
The border between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan was closed following the
riots, during which cars were set on fire, and stores, markets, and
residential buildings smashed and looted.
Kyrgyz and Uzbek ethnic leaders in Kyrgyzstan agreed on Sunday to begin
reconciliation talks.
Officials from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) were set
to gather on Monday to discuss ways to resolve the crisis in Kyrgyzstan,
including possible deployment of a peacekeeping contingent.
The CSTO, a post-Soviet security bloc, comprises Kyrgyzstan, Russia,
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.(end)
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KUNA 141346 Jun 10NNNN