MOSCOW, October 10 (RIA Novosti) – A train reportedly carrying 200 new recruits for Tajikistan's army overturned Thursday, injuring at least 37 people, as it passed through a swath of Uzbek territory.
The train was traveling from Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, to the northern city of Konibodom, in the western Fergana Valley.
Initial media reports suggested that the railroad’s infrastructure might be to blame for the incident. No fatalities have been reported.
The northern section of Tajikistan's railway network crosses through Uzbekistan, creating logistical complications.
Independent Tajik news website Asia-Plus reported that the train was carrying troops to a military base.
The two countries have been at odds for several years over water resources, in particular due to Tajik plans to build a dam that Uzbekistan says will disrupt river flows to agriculturally sensitive areas.
Uzbekistan imposed a railroad blockade on Tajikistan in late 2009, a measure widely seen as intended to stop the dam’s construction.
About a year later, a mysterious bridge explosion in Uzbekistan severed railway transport to southern Tajikistan.
