President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov held a meeting of the Security Council on the situation on the border in Batken region. Press service of the head of state reported.
Measures were discussed to prevent further escalation of the current situation on the Kyrgyz-Tajik section of the state border and to reduce the level of tension.
Shooting began at several sites of the border between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan on the morning of September 16. According to the Border Service of the State Committee for National Security, at about 6 a.m. the Tajik side started firing at the border detachments and positions of the Kyrgyz side. Later, the Tajik side began mortar shelling of border outposts and border villages in Leilek and Batken districts. At least 59 people were wounded. Shooting continues for the third day. As a result of the armed conflict on the Kyrgyz-Tajik border, residents of seven villages in Batken and Leilek districts left their homes.
The Border Service of the State Committee for National Security of the Kyrgyz Republic made an official statement that the heads of the security services of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, Kamchybek Tashiev and Saimumin Yatimov, agreed to ceasefire at 4 p.m. Presidents Sadyr Japarov and Emomali Rahmon also agreed to ceasefire. The Kyrgyz side completely stopped firing, while the Tajik side reduced intensity. But, according to the latest data from the Border Service of the State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan, the Tajik side opened fire again.
