Fresh clashes in Kyrgyzstan prompt call for restraint from UN chief

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has issued a call for calm and restraint as reports of violence and loss of life emerge from Kyrgyzstan, where clashes have broken out between supporters and opponents of the Provisional Government.

One person was reportedly killed and at least 58 wounded in the seizures of Government buildings in Osh, Jalalabad and Batken in southern Kyrgyzstan.

“The Secretary-General urges all concerned to show restraint and to resolve issues peacefully through dialogue,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson, Martin Nesirky, stated.

“He underlines the need to respect the rule of law and appeals for calm.”

The Provisional Government has been in place in the Central Asian nation since last month, after President Kurmanbek Bakiyev was ousted in a bloody uprising in which dozens of people died.

An arrangement reached between the Provisional Government and the former leader enabled him to leave the country for neighbouring Kazakhstan.