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Ten Kazakh emergencies ministry officers hurt in riots - TV

According to the television channel, some of those hurt received gunshot wounds

NUR-SULTAN, January 7. /TASS/. Ten officers of Kazakhstan’s emergencies ministry have been hurt during riots in the country, the Khabar-24 television channel reported on Friday, citing the ministry’s spokesman, Talgat Uali.

According to the television channel, some of those hurt received gunshot wounds. Thirty-three attacks at fire engines on duty have been reported in recent days. Thirty firefighting and rescue vehicles have been damaged.

"Rioters tossed stones and shot at firefighters, and blocked their way. Despite threats, firefighters put out 75 fires and saved 143 people," the spokesman said.

Protests erupted in several Kazakh cities on January 2 to grow into mass riots with attacks on government buildings in many cities several days later. Thousands have been injured and fatalities have also been reported. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev asked help from the Collective Security Treaty Organization, or CSTO, a post-Soviet security bloc. CSTO peacekeepers have already been deployed to Kazakhstan. According to the Kazakh authorities, law and order had been restored in all of the country’s regions by the morning on January 7. However, the situation in Almaty is still very tense.