Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan: Refugees in numbers
| Publisher | IRIN |
| Publication Date | 17 June 2010 |
| Cite as | IRIN, Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan: Refugees in numbers, 17 June 2010, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4c2073c8c.html [accessed 29 May 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. |
DUBAI, 17 June 2010 (IRIN) - Ethnic Uzbek women, children and the elderly living in southern Kyrgyzstan continue to flee clashes with Kyrgyz groups and cross the nearby border into Uzbekistan in search of security and shelter.
The UN, regional governments and aid agencies have called for an immediate end to the violence, the protection of vulnerable persons and the facilitation of humanitarian assistance to those in need in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
The main areas of fighting in Kyrgyzstan - Osh and Jalal-Abad cities in the south - and the main areas refugees are fleeing to in Uzbekistan, are all within the eastern part of the Fergana Valley, a fertile, densely populated and ethnically diverse region of Central Asia spreading across eastern Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
Key events and figures
7 April - Former Kyrgyzstan President Kurmanbek Bakiev is ousted by opposition forces and an interim government headed by Roza Otunbayeva is established.
10 June - Tensions between ethnic Kyrgyz and Uzbeks leads to violent clashes in Osh, Kyrgyzstan's second largest city and just 5km from the Uzbek-Kyrgyz border.
13 June - Violence spreads to Jalal-Abad city, about 40km northeast of Osh and also close to the Uzbek-Kyrgyz border; the Kyrgyz interim government declares a state of emergency in southern Kyrgyzstan.
17 June - At least 189 people are killed in clashes, according to the Kyrgyz health ministry, with 1,900 injured.
- 400,000 Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks have been forced to flee their homes in Kyrgyzstan according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
- 40,000 ethnic Uzbeks at or near the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
- 80,000 refugees are staying in schools, public buildings and camps in Andijan province, Uzbekistan, says OCHA. Andijan province is in the eastern part of Uzbekistan on the immediate border with Kyrgyzstan. The provincial capital, Andijan city, is some 50km northwest of Osh.
- 48 temporary refugee camps in Hanabad city, Jalakuduk, Marhamat, Khojabad, Pakhtabad and Kurgantepa districts in Andijan province are host to the majority of newly arrived refugees, OCHA reports.
- 70 schools in Andijan, Fergana and Namangan provinces are sheltering refugees, the UN humanitarian coordination office says. See logistics map.
17 and 18 June - According to OCHA, a multi-sector rapid assessment will take place to "fill critical information gaps regarding water and sanitation, food, shelter/camp management, logistics and protection. The findings will form the basis for an international appeal."
