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| Title | Blast kills one in western Kazakhstan |
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Country | Kazakhstan |
| Publication Date | 31 October 2011 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Blast kills one in western Kazakhstan, 31 October 2011, available at: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4ec5042fc.html [accessed 31 May 2012] |
| 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. |
Blast kills one in western Kazakhstan
October 31, 2011
The Atyrau Oblast governor's office was immediately evacuated after an explosive device detonated nearby.
ATYRAU, Kazakhstan – Two explosions have rocked Kazakhstan's western city of Atyrau, killing a suspected suicide bomber, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports.
The Atyrau Oblast Prosecutor's Office press service told journalists that the first explosion took place on October 31 at 8.45 a.m. in Qulmanov Street in the Caspian port city, and the second at 9.50 a.m. in the central Saryarqa district.
One man died in the second blast. It is not clear if he intended to commit a suicide attack, or detonated the explosive device by accident. It is also not known whether he planted or detonated the first explosive device.
Prosecutors said the unidentified man "used an explosive device, as a result of which he died on the spot," while local media identified him as a suicide bomber.
Local newspaper "Aq Zhaiyq" wrote that the first explosion took place near the building housing the Atyrau Oblast governor's office, which was immediately evacuated.
A correspondent with "Aq Zhaiyq" was detained by police after she took pictures of the city police department building near the site of one of the blasts. She was later released.
The territory where the blasts took place is cordoned off by police, and nobody is allowed to enter.
Bombing attacks have been rare in Kazakhstan, but in May, two explosions including the country's first known suicide bombing killed at least two people.
Today's blasts come a week after a video clip was posted on YouTube in which a previously unknown Islamist group demanded Kazakhstan repeal a new law banning daily prayers on the premises of branches of government.
In the clip, one of five masked fighters toting Kalashnikovs and a grenade launcher warned Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev and the country's authorities that they will take "appropriate measures" unless the law is repealed
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
Topics: Terrorism,
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