NUR-SULTAN, January 11. /TASS/. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said that the unity of the country’s society was being methodically destabilized while the National Security Committee did not spot the threat.

"The unity of our society was being methodically destabilized including by means of protest rallies according to professionally developed scenarios. The clandestine preparation of the specific executors of radical measures was underway. The National Security Committee as an authorized body was not able to and did not want to clearly assess this undermining work did not spot the critical threat to the national security," the Kazakh leader said addressing the Mazhilis (lower house) on Tuesday.

He noted that the plan of attack on Kazakhstan was comprehensive and was developed by professionals. "The plan of attack on Kazakhstan included a whole range of various aspects - military, political, ideological, disinformation and others. Preparations for the power takeover were developed by the professionals," the Kazakh president explained. According to him, the militants intended to seize power in Kazakhstan.

Protests erupted in several Kazakh cities on January 2, escalating into mass riots with government buildings getting ransacked in several cities a few days later. The ensuing violence left scores of people injured, with fatalities also being reported. Subsequently, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev turned to the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) requesting assistance from the Russia-led bloc. As a result, peacekeepers have already been deployed to Kazakhstan. Law and order, Kazakh authorities affirm, was restored to all of the country’s regions by the morning of January 7. The most complex situation remains in Almaty. The Kazakh president declared January 10 the day of national mourning in the republic.