Kazakhstan’s president said on Friday that he given security services orders to shoot to kill those he called “terrorists,” accusing them of continued violence, Anadolu Agency reports.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s order for law enforcement services and the military "to open fire to kill the terrorists without warning," came in a televised address.
Earlier Friday, he told security officials: "The constitutional order was restored in general in all parts of the country. Local authorities are in control of the situation.
“But terrorists still continue to use weapons and damage people's property. So, the counter-terrorism operation will continue until the militants are completely destroyed."
The Interior Ministry also announced earlier that 26 protesters had lost their lives and another 18 were injured in anti-government demonstrations.
At least 18 security officers have died during ongoing violence in the Central Asian country stemming from protests over rising fuel prices, the Interior Ministry announced Thursday.
The protests began in western Kazakhstan on Jan. 2 over an increase in the prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and later spread to other areas of the country before going nationwide.
In response, Tokayev declared a state of emergency in the commercial capital Almaty and the oil-rich Mangystau region.
Tokayev also approved the resignation of the government, and requested support from the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Eurasian alliance of former Soviet states.