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Kyrgyz Police Retreat From Ex-President's Compound Amid Attack by Atambayev's Supporters

MOSCOW/BISHKEK (Sputnik) - Police units are retreating from the compound of former Kyrgyz president Almazbek Atambayev amid attacks by his supporters.
Sputnik

Atambayev's supporters have completely surrounded the ex-president's residence and captured several police officers who had previously stormed the house. The whereabouts of Atambayev himself are unknown, his supporters claim that he is still at home. The shooting at the residence ceased.

Special police units stormed Atambayev's residence outside the capital of Bishkek earlier in the day, using flashbang grenades and rubber bullets. Local media reported about 10 people were wounded in clashes between police and Atambayev's supporters.

Several Kyrgyz police officers surrendered to Atambayev's supporters after an attempt to detain him, Atambayev's press office said.

"Some of security officers, who were in the house and stormed it, surrendered to our supporters," the press office said.

About 200 supporters of former Kyrgyz president Almazbek Atambayev are preparing for a new attempt by special police units to storm his residence, they are armed with sticks and stones, eyewitnesses said.

"They [the supporters] are preparing for another assault, they are waiting for arrival of police reinforcements," the witnesses said.

Meanwhile, the Kyrgyz security agencies have denied reports about police officers surrendering to Atambayev's supporters during the assault on his compound.

Police were unable to detain Atambayev, who remains in his house, the ex-president's adviser, Farid Niyazov, said, refuting the earlier reports.  

Atambayev, who served as the president of Kyrgyzstan from December 2011 to November 2017, has been refusing to obey a subpoena in an unspecified criminal investigation.

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