Tajikistan: Khorog Hard Hit by Gunbattles
| Publisher | Institute for War and Peace Reporting |
| Author | IWPR Central Asia |
| Publication Date | 31 July 2012 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | RCA Issue 681 |
| Cite as | Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Tajikistan: Khorog Hard Hit by Gunbattles, 31 July 2012, RCA Issue 681, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/501fae012.html [accessed 7 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Khorog, the main town in Badakhshan region of southeast Tajikistan, has been left badly scarred by last week's gunbattles between government troops and supporters of a rebellious local frontier guards officer.
When Talib Ayombekov refused to be questioned himself or to surrender suspects in the murder of top regional security official Major-General Abdullo Nazarov, central government ordered thousands of soldiers into the region to capture them. The fighting came to a halt with a ceasefire, which is still holding, but not outright defeat for the rebels. Efforts are now under way to get them to hand over their weapons, and they are being offered amnesty if they do so. (See also Tajik Rebels Lay Down Arms in Badakhshan.)
Local residents have staged a number of protests against the military offensive, not because they support Ayombekov but more out of anger at the intensity of the assault on an urban area full of civilians. They feel a lower-key effort to apprehend the suspects would have been more effective, and would certainly not have placed them at such risk.
