Images released by the Russian military show troops departing for Kazakhstan amid deadly anti-government protests in the Central Asian country. January 6 also saw scores of unidentified military personnel shooting automatic weapons in downtown Almaty.
PHOTOS: Russian Troops Depart For Kazakhstan As Soldiers In Almaty Open Fire
- By RFE/RL
1
A vehicle being unloaded from a Russian transport plane at an unspecified location in Kazakhstan on the evening of January 6.
2
Russian airborne troops bound for Kazakhstan board a transport plane at Chkalovsky Airfield, northeast of Moscow, on January 6. A day earlier, Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev appealed for the intervention of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), blaming foreign-trained "terrorist" gangs for the unrest sweeping his country.
3
A Russian Ilyushin IL-76 transport aircraft carrying troops departing for Kazakhstan from Chkalovsky Airfield. The CSTO is a military alliance of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.
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Unidentified military personnel fire their weapons in the center of Almaty on January 6. In video of this scene, the man at right appears to be signaling to stop shooting after a sustained burst of gunfire from the formation.
5
A truck burns next to the mayor's office in Almaty on the evening of January 5. There was violence and looting overnight in the city after massive anti-government protests swept much of the country.
6
Damage inside the Almaty mayor's office on January 5.
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The mayor's office in central Almaty burns on January 6 after being stormed and ransacked by protesters a day earlier.
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A toppled Christmas tree inside a looted store in Almaty.
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A man watches the Almaty office of Kazakhstan's state broadcaster burn on January 6.
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A wall of security forces lines the perimeter of the presidential palace in Nur-Sultan. The Kazakh capital city has been relatively quiet as deadly violence has swept Almaty.
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Troops in Almaty's main Republic Square on January 6.
12
The mayor's office in Almaty burning on the evening of January 5.
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Protesters wearing military-style helmets in Almaty on January 5.
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Scores of unidentified soldiers gather as gunfire rings out in central Almaty on January 6.
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A fire truck burns in Almaty on January 5.
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A man walks past the French House perfume store in Almaty on January 6.
Security forces in Kazakhstan say they have killed dozens of anti-government rioters in Almaty. The authorities say 12 members of the security forces have been killed and 353 injured in the unrest, which was sparked by a doubling in the cost of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
