About 3,000 people took to the streets in Khorog, the capital of Tajikistan’s restive Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region, demanding the withdrawal of government troops from the area, a security source said on Wednesday.
The protests were sparked by the death of informal local leader Imomnazar Imomnazarov, who was killed on Tuesday night by a blast in his own house. His younger brother was injured.
“The protesters, who gathered at the square in front of the regional administration building after the death of… Imomnazar Imomnazarov demand the withdrawal of all government troops from Khorog within 20 days,” the source said, adding that the protesters threw stones at the building.
Two protesters were injured when the rally was dispersed.
A previous rally was sparked by shooting incident at a security cordon near the city. Servicemen opened fire at a car that refused to stop.
The Gorno-Badakhshan region remains volatile 15 years after a civil war between the Moscow-backed government and an Islamist-led opposition, in which up to 50,000 people were killed. The five-year war ended in 1997 with a United Nations-brokered peace agreement.
On July 24, Special Forces from the Presidential Guard, the National Security Committee, and the Interior Ministry held a special operation in eastern Tajikistan against a mafia-style group believed to be behind the murder of a top Tajik security general. Thirty members of the criminal group were killed and 40 detained. During the operation, 17 enforcement officers were killed and 40 were injured.
