One Dead In Uzbek Stabbing Incident During Cotton-Picking

The stabbing is the second deadly incident that has occurred in a cotton-picking area in Qashqadaryo this month. (file photo)

QARSHI, Uzbekistan -- A student at a teacher-training university in southern Uzbekistan has been accused of stabbing four fellow students, killing one and injuring the other three.

The incident occurred at a mandatory cotton-picking site in the province of Qashqadaryo.

Officials in the Qashqadaryo regional health-care department told RFE/RL late on September 18 that the incident took place two days previously and was allegedly triggered by bullying.

It's the second deadly incident that has occurred in a cotton-picking area in Qashqadaryo this month.

A college student died in a cotton field on September 9 after she touched a live electrical wire.

For years, human rights watchdogs have accused Uzbek authorities of forcing schoolchildren and university students to pick cotton, one of the country's biggest exports.