Kazakhstan president says he has ordered troops to shoot to kill protesters without warning

The mayor of Almaty's office seen ablaze in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on January 5, 2022.

Valery Sharifulin\TASS via Getty Images

• Kazakhstan's president said he gave the order to shoot to kill protesters without warning them.
• Huge protests over fuel prices have seen the government resign and dozens of people killed.
• Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also claimed that order had been restored.

The president of Kazakhstan said he gave an order to his country's troops to shoot to kill protesters without giving warning.

The Kazakh media outlet Vlast reported on Friday that Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the country's president, said in a speech: "I have given an order to open fire to kill without warning."

Nationwide protests have taken place across Kazakhstan over the past week in response to rising fuel prices.

The country's government resigned, and police said they killed dozens of protesters who stormed government buildings.

The protests began after the government removed a price cap on liquefied petroleum gas. The president reversed the price rise on Wednesday, according to Reuters.

Thousands of people have been detained, The Guardian reported, and Tokayev said on Friday that order in Kazakhstan had mostly been restored, Reuters reported.

The country's internet was also blocked on Thursday, and remained blocked on Friday, the internet-monitoring company Netblocks said.

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