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Dozens of gunmen in shootout with police, taking hostages in Kazakhstan - reports Manhunt on for 'over 20 religious radicals' after shootout, attack on military HQ in Kazakhstan
(35 minutes later)
A manhunt is reportedly under way in western Kazakhstan for people who robbed gun shops and are engaged in a shootout with police. Eyewitnesses said the gunmen took hostages, and there are reports of casualties. Three people were killed and 10 others injured by suspected Islamists, who stole weapons from gun shops and attacked a military base, the country’s Interior Ministry said. Earlier, local media reported firefights and mass evacuations in the city of Aktobe.
Unconfirmed reports in the local media say several young men were being sought in Aktobe, a city of some 300,000 residents in northwest Kazakhstan. A shop manager and two soldiers were killed by the assailants, who targeted the city located in north-western Kazakhstan on Sunday, officials said. The people, including nine soldiers were injured in clashes.
They are believed to have robbed two gun shops. The police and the armed men reportedly clashed with each other in a firefight. Some media said the gunmen took several hostages. “Thanks to the countermeasures one of the attackers was arrested, three killed and another one injured. Several of the perpetrators were blocked while some others managed to escape. A manhunt for them is underway,” ministry spokesman Almas Sadubayev told journalists.
The authorities are reportedly evacuating shopping malls in the area and are treating the emergency as a counter-terrorism operation. The attackers first robbed two gun shops and then used the stolen weapons to attack a nearby base of the national guard, the report said.
Kazakh police reported that two people were injured in the clashes, but would not immediately provide any details. The ministry said that the attackers were “followers of non-traditional religious sects,” a term used to describe radical Islamists.
The website Tengrinews.kz put the number of casualties higher, citing medical sources as saying that some 20 people with gunshots were taken to the hospital. Local media reports suggested that there were from 20 to 30 gunman engaged in the shootout. Some media said the gunmen took several hostages.The website Tengrinews.kz put the number of casualties higher, citing medical sources as saying that some 20 people with gunshots were taken to the hospital.
Earlier, Kazakh media reported that a number of gunmen were engaged in a firefight with security troops in Aktobe, a city with some 300,000 residents.
The police evacuated shopping malls in the area and said they were treating the emergency as a counter-terrorist operation.