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"The shoot-to-kill order, to the extent it exists, is wrong and should be rescinded," Blinken said during an interview on ABC's "This Week."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

An online summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which was suggested by Kazakshtan in light of recent unrest there, is planned for Monday, the press service of the Armenian government told Sputnik.

On Saturday, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said, in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, that Armenia, as the chair of the CSTO, will organize the meeting.

"The CSTO meeting is tentatively scheduled for tomorrow," the press service said.

The Organization of Turkic States is ready to offer Kazakhstan any help it needs to overcome the security crisis in the wake of fuel protests, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Sunday.

"We will look into this situation at a meeting tomorrow and will offer all help that is needed," the diplomat said in a broadcast statement ahead of the organization's extraordinary video conference.

The organization is made up of five Turkic-speaking states, namely Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and Uzbekistan.

Two servicemen were killed and 163 were injured during the state of emergency in Kazakhstan, the country's defence ministry said on Sunday.

"In total, as of 9 January 2022, during operations to enforce the state of emergency, two servicemen of the armed forces of Kazakhstan were killed, 163 people were wounded," the ministry said in a statement published on Telegram.

According to the ministry, extremists attempted to attack military facilities in a number of regions. However, the militants did not manage to break through.

Some 5,800 people in Kazakhstan were placed in police custody after fuel protests turned violent, according to figures published by the presidency on Sunday.

"As of today, 125 criminal cases have been opened. Some 5,800 people have been taken into police custody, including a large number of foreign nationals," the president's press office said in a statement.

The presidency said that security had largely been restored in all regions of the ex-Soviet republic, all government buildings had been recaptured and communal services were being restored.

Russian peacekeeping troops, part of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) mission to protest-hit Kazakhstan, began emergency prevention exercises at an airfield near Almaty on Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

"Russia's CSTO peacekeeping units are conducting exercises at the Almaty airfield to train emergency prevention," a statement read.

The ministry said it would continue airlifting CSTO peacekeepers to the Almaty and Zhetygen airports near the former Kazakh capital. CSTO troops have been guarding critical infrastructure across the country.

Gunfire was heard in several districts of the Kazakh economic hub Almaty on Sunday morning, media said.

The Mir 24 news channel said these could be warning shots.

A Sputnik correspondent said sporadic gunfights between security forces and armed mobs continued overnight. Up to 100 gunmen and looters were arrested during the nighttime operation and some 118 weapons seized.

Erzhan Babakumarov, the city administration's deputy head, said at least 850 attackers, looters and other criminals had been arrested in Kazakhstan's former capital since unrest broke out a week ago.

Peacekeepers from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a military alliance of six post-Soviet states, are guarding key assets in protest-hit Kazakhstan, the Kazakh presidency said Sunday.

"A joint contingent of CSTO peacekeepers was put on guard duty at several strategic facilities," the president's office said in a statement.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was briefed on measures to restore order in the country, his office said. Police and armed forces are maintaining a state of emergency, manning roadblocks and tracking down terrorists, who the authorities say are responsible for violence during protests.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev ordered the government to form a special commission that would oversee post-violence reconstruction and emergency response.

Former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev gave up the post of the the head of the country's security council of his own will and transferred it to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev since the violent protests demanded an urgent and tough response, Nazarbayev’s spokesperson Aidos Ukibay says.

"...the situation was very difficult and therefore the Elbasy [Nursultan Nazarbayev] himself decided to transfer the post of chairman of the Security Council to the President, as he was well aware that riots and terror demanded a prompt, tough and uncompromising response from the country's leadership," Ukibay said on Sunday.

The spokesperson confirmed that Nazarbayev is currently in the Kazakh capital of Nur-Sultan and is providing support to Tokayev.

President Tokayev announced on Wednesday that he was taking up the role of the head of the country's security council.

The counter-terrorism operation in Kazakhstan is moving to a new stage and military forces have been stationed at all checkpoints to prevent the escape of militants from Almaty, the Khabar 24 TV channel reports.

All vehicles are being inspected at the 13 checkpoints located around the city of Almaty and thorough document checks are being carried out. Law enforcement authorities have taken full control of all entrances and exits from the city.

All suspects get detained and are then taken to the headquarters, Khabar 24 reported on Sunday.

The crisis management center at the Russian Foreign Ministry hopes that the measures taken by Kazakh authorities to stabilize the situation in the country will soon bring positive results, with the support of peacekeepers from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

"We hope that the measures taken by the authorities to stabilize the situation with the support of the contingent of the CSTO collective forces, our peacekeepers, will bring results in the near future," a representative of the crisis management center told Sputnik.

The Almaty International Airport is ready for reopening, but it will only resume operations once the security situation stabilizes, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Industry and Infrastructural Development informs.

"The Almaty airport activity will resume after the stabilization of the situation in the city. In general, the air harbor is technically ready for opening," the ministry said in a statement.

On Saturday, the Almaty airport’s press service told Sputnik that the airport will remain closed until 10 January.

Passenger flights to and from Almaty were suspended after the air hub was captured during the week of violent protests in Kazakhstan. A Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson said on Friday that Kazakh security forces had recaptured the airport and were overseeing it alongside Russia's contingent of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) peacekeeping mission.

The total losses from the mass unrest in Kazakhstan amount to over $210 million, the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of the Republic of Kazakhstan "Atameken" informs.

Earlier, Kazakh Interior Minister Yerlan Turgumbayev said that looters plundered more than 100 large trade and bank facilities in Kazakhstan during the riots and preliminary damage amounts to over 87 billion tenge (more than $200 million).

"The total amount of damage was, according to rough estimates, more than 92.3 billion tenge [$213 million], (in Almaty - 90.7 billion tenge)," Atameken said in a statement.

Russian peacekeepers from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) forces are now protecting vital facilities and key infrastructure in Kazakhstan, the Russian Defense Ministry informs.

"Units from the Russian peacekeeping contingent, which had previously arrived on the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan, began to fulfill the assigned tasks to protect vital facilities, airfields, and key social infrastructure facilities," the defense ministry said in a Sunday statement.