Rebels Forced to Retreat After Striking Kyrgyzstan Border
Scores of Islamic rebels attacked government troops in a rugged border region of Kyrgyzstan but were repulsed after a six-hour battle, an official said Saturday.
Two Kyrgyz government soldiers were wounded in the fighting Friday along the border with Tajikistan, but there were no immediate casualty figures for the rebels, Kyrgyz Security Council Chief Bolot Dzhanuzakov said in comments carried by Russian news agencies.
He said that Kyrgyzstan’s air force bombed suspected rebel positions after the guerrillas retreated to Tajikistan and that about 800 rebels were preparing for a new attack, reports said.
Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet republic, has lost 27 troops in fighting with the rebels since Aug. 11, Dzhanuzakov said.
The area of the battle, where the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan converge, has seen sporadic fighting this summer between an Islamic separatist movement and troops from all three countries.
The continued fighting has raised concerns in Russia. The Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that Russia has offered to help the three countries fight the insurgency but did not give specifics.
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