Dokument #1407515
RFE/RL – Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (Autor)
Authorities in Kyrgyzstan say security forces have killed two suspected militants in a gunbattle in the northern Chui region.
The State Committee for National Security (UKMK) said the exchange of gunfire occurred in the Jaiyl district on August 29.
According to the UKMK, security forces opened fire after three suspected members of a terrorist group who were holed up in a house refused to surrender.
It said two of the suspects were killed and the third one was injured and captured.
It was impossible to independently verify the UKMK account, which said there were no casualties among the security forces.
Authorities began searching for the suspects on August 24 after two men threatened a police patrol with a gun and grenade in the capital, Bishkek, the UKMK said.
It said a fourth alleged member of the same group was detained in Bishkek and that investigators found a gun and ammunition in the suspect's home.
The UKMK did not identify any of the suspected militants by name.
Kyrgyz authorities have arrested dozens of people suspected of being members of banned Islamic groups and militant groups in recent years.
Kyrgyz officials say hundreds of citizens of the Central Asian country have traveled to the Middle East to fight alongside Islamic State militants in recent years.
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