Live Updates: Blinken Reportedly Says Shoot to Kill Order in Kazakhstan 'Wrong'

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev replaced two deputy heads of the country's National Security Committee, according to the presidential decree published by his press service on Sunday.

Deputy chairmen of the country's security committee, Marat Osipov and Daulet Ergozhin, were relieved from their duties. Bakytbek Koszhanov and Askar Amerkhanov were appointed new deputy heads by the presidential decree.

Karim Masimov, the former chief of the National Security Committee, was previously taken into custody on treason charges. The committee said that a pre-trial investigation was opened into Masimov and unnamed others on Thursday after Kazakhstan was hit by violent protests.

More than 160 foreign citizens have been detained in the Kazakh capital of Nur-Sultan while the police check the legality of their presence in the city, the police said on Sunday.

Local police inspectors are checking rented apartments, housing and hostels.

"161 foreign individuals were brought to the police station for checking the legality of their stay in the capital," the capital police said in a statement posted on Instagram.

"The shoot-to-kill order, to the extent it exists, is wrong and should be rescinded," Blinken said during an interview on ABC's "This Week."

Russian President Vladimir Putin will dial in to a video conference of heads of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) on Monday to discuss Kazakhstan, his office said.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in an emergency meeting of the Council of the Collective Security Treaty Organization on January 10, 2022," a statement read.

The video summit of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan will focus on the situation in Kazakhstan in the wake of violent protests and on ways to normalize it.

The sides do not plan to adopt any documents following the extraordinary session of the CSTO security council on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will make personnel changes in the government on 11 January, the presidential press secretary, Berik Uali, said on Sunday, following nearly a week of protests.

"On January 11, there will be personnel changes," Uali said as aired by the Kazakh broadcaster Khabar 24.

Earlier on Sunday, it was reported that Tokayev would present the candidacy of the new head of government on 11 January.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov said on Sunday that he could not rule out the possibility that some Kyrgyz citizens may have taken part in protests in Kazakhstan over the past week.

Currency exchange services in Kazakhstan's banks have been suspended for security purposes, the country's national bank said Sunday, following several days of protests that started over increased fuel prices and quickly descended into violence.

The suspension is meant to ensure "security and safety of the services themselves as well as staff and clients," according to the bank's statement.

The banking system will be restored in stages due to unstable internet and ongoing counterterrorist operation in the city of Almaty, the bank said.

On Monday, Kazakhstan will launch payment systems to ensure that salaries, pensions and welfare benefits can be transferred to people's accounts, the national bank said.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization's (CSTO) Secretary General Stanislav Zas discussed the peacekeeping operation in Kazakhstan with the head of the CSTO mission in the country, Col. Gen. Andrey Serdyukov, a spokesperson for CSTO said on Sunday.

"The progress of the CSTO peacekeepers deployment on the territory of Kazakhstan, which were sent there in accordance with the decision of the Collective Security Council, adopted on January 6, 2022, in order to normalize the situation in the Republic of Kazakhstan, was discussed. It was noted that the units of the peacekeepers have already begun to fulfill the assigned tasks. They took important state, military and strategic facilities under protection, " Vladimir Zainetdinov said.

The counter-terrorist operation in Kazakhstan will continue until the complete elimination of terrorists and the restoration of order in the country, Kazakh Deputy Minister of Defense Lieutenant General Sultan Gamaletdinov said Sunday.

"As of now, the counter-terrorist operation continues on the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It will continue until the complete elimination of terrorists and the restoration of the constitutional order in the Republic of Kazakhstan," Gamaletdinov said at a joint briefing with the head of the CSTO mission in Kazakhstan, Col. Gen. Andrey Serdyukov.

About 400 protesters were detained in the Kazakh city of Shymkent, half of whom came from other regions, Kazakh broadcaster Khabar 24 channel reported on Sunday, citing sources in the city administration.

According to the broadcaster, 45 police officers received various injuries, two officers with serious injuries were admitted to intensive care, and 155 administrative and 55 criminal cases were initiated.

Earlier on Sunday, the broadcaster reported that police of the Kazakh city of Taraz eliminated about ten criminals, and also detained 153 people as part of the counterterrorist operation.

The Interior Ministry said more than 1,300 police, National Guard troops and military personnel had been hurt across the country since violent protests broke out over high fuel prices a week ago. The ministry revised the number of law enforcers killed during security operations down to 16 from 18.

The mission will remain in the country until the situation normalises, the chief of the peacekeepers said.

Death toll in recent unrest in Kazakhstan reached 164, Kazakhstan's Health Ministry said Sunday.

"During the unrest, 164 people died in Kazakhstan, [including] 103 in Almaty," a statement on the Telegram channel with releases of Kazakh government agencies said.

The protesters in Kazakhstan demonstrated professional skills, Kazakh acting Interior Minister Yerlan Turgumbayev said on Sunday, adding that the rioters used radio to coordinate their actions.

"The protesters demonstrated professional skills ... They used radio stations to coordinate their actions," Turgumbayev said as aired by Kazakh broadcaster Khabar 24 TV channel.

According to Turgumbayev, the rioters also attacked the buildings of the police and military units in an attempt to seize weapons.