Kyrgyzstan's authorities intend to extend a curfew imposed in the country's south over recent ethnic clashes and temporarily lifted over a referendum on a new constitution until August 10, AKIpress reported on Sunday, referring to interim Prime Minister Roza Otunbayeva.
Clashes between ethnic Kyrgyz and Uzbeks, who account for about 15% of Kyrgyzstan's population, broke out in the southern Kyrgyz city of Osh on June 11, lasting several days and spreading to nearby Jalalabad.
According to the latest data of Kyrgyzstan's health ministry, the death toll in the southern Kyrgyz ethnic clashes has risen to 283 people, while the number of injured stands at 2,238, including 1,047 hospitalized and 1,190 patients who received out-patient treatment.
Kyrgyz authorities admit, though, that the actual number of casualties may be ten times higher.
The situation in Kyrgyzstan remains highly volatile, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) proposed on Wednesday sending international police to prevent the spread of violence in the Central Asian republic.
Kyrgyzstan is holding on Sunday a nation-wide referendum on a new constitution intended to give more power to parliament and test public confidence in the interim government.
MOSCOW, June 27 (RIA Novosti)
