Opposition demonstrations turn violent in Kyrgyzstan (video)
Kyrgyzstan's President Kurmanbek Bakiev has reportedly ordered a state of emergency in Bishkek and three other areas after antigovernment protests turned violent.
The order -- which is yet to be approved by parliament -- came after gunfire between police and people within a crowd of protesters in Bishkek reportedly killed five people.
A Reuters photographer confirmed witness reports that five dead bodies were lying on Bishkek's central square near the presidential compound after the clash. The Associated Press reported at least four dead. Local hospitals report receiving at least six people who were injured by the gunfire.
WATCH: Kyrgyz authorities have declared a state of emergency in the capital, Bishkek, after antigovernment protesters clashed with police, hurling stones and Molotov cocktails.
RFE/RL correspondents saw the gun battle at the White House compound as demonstrators were trying to force their way past police and soldiers to demand the resignation of Bakiev.
In a day of dramatic developments, television stations in Bishkek also went off the air after an angry crowd stormed the headquarters of the state television building.
The angry crowd reportedly numbering several thousand people attempted to storm the presidential building as protests that started in the northwestern city of Talas on April 6 spread throughout the country.
Earlier today, authorities fired tear gas and stun grenades on a crowd of antigovernment demonstrators outside the offices of the main opposition party.
The opposition last month called for nationwide protests today if the government did not meet a list of demands, including the release of jailed opposition politicians.
In the northeastern city of Naryn, a crowd reportedly numbering more than 1,000 people seized the provincial administration building there.
And demonstrators in the northwestern city of Talas continue to occupy at least some of the provincial administration building there.
RFE/RL's correspondent in Talas reported seeing Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiev and Governor Beishen Bolotbekov being attacked outside the local police station by protesters who also seized that building. Kongantiev had gone to Talas after thousands of protesters seized the government building there overnight.
Protesters seized the building on April 6, briefly holding the governor hostage before police and commandos retook the building in the evening.
The protesters returned later and reoccupied the building after reportedly attacking some of the policemen. Authorities said some 80 policemen were injured, some by stones thrown by protesters.
The building remains occupied by protesters today and according to reports, some 7,000 people have gathered near the Talas administrative building and the central police station.
Other demonstrations were reported in the town of Tokmok, near Bishkek, where protesters also reportedly seized the administration building, and in the southern city of Osh.
Opposition Figures Detained
Key opposition figures were detained overnight, including Social Democratic Party leader and former Prime Minister Almaz Atambaev, and Omurbek Tekebaev the head of the Ata-Meken (Fatherland) party. Prosecutors said they were accused of "serious crimes."
Opposition figure Bolot Sherniazov, who was at the center of the unrest in Talas on April 6, was also reportedly in police custody.
Another opposition leader, former Foreign Minister Roza Otunbaeva, has reportedly gone into hiding to avoid arrest. The "Roza Otunbayeva" Twitter account has been active throughout the day, with some posts calling on journalists to cover the "real situation" in the country and not the one presented by the authorities.
One of the protesters in Bishkek, who did not reveal her name, said the opposition is hiding Otunbaeva, "because the authorities themselves are violating all principles of the Kyrgyz Constitution."
Many independent websites are blocked and local opposition media outlets are being prevented from printing or broadcasting.
The unrest follows weeks of tension between the opposition and the government of President Bakiev, accused by opponents of cracking down on independent media and fostering corruption.
Bakiev came to power after the People's, or "Tulip" Revolution in March 2005 that ousted longtime President Askar Akaev, who many accused of consolidating power in his own hands and helping friends and family members get government posts.
Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov and Prosecutor-General Nurlan Tursunkulov have appealed for calm but warned those responsible for the events in Talas and other cities where disorder is being reported will face charges.
Russia, the United States, and the United Nations have called for calm and urged the Kyrgyz government to avoid resorting to force to restore order.
In a statement today, the U.S. Embassy in Bishkek said it was "deeply concerned" about the reports of civil disturbances in Talas and urged all sides to resolve their differences peacefully.
Kazakhstan, the current chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, expressed concern about the unrest and called for "calm and restraint on all sides." Kazakh Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabaev said he had spoken on the phone with Kyrgyz counterpart Kadyrbek Sarbaev.
Neighboring Uzbekistan reportedly increased security along its borders with Kyrgyzstan.
Kazakh authorities said they would take all necessary measures to reinforce security alongside the Kazakh-Kyrgyz border if the situation in the neighboring country escalated further.
"So far, the border is operating under its regular regime," Kenzhebulat Beknazarov. a spokesman for the Kazakh Committee for National Security, told reporters today. "However, the Kazakh border service is ready to take appropriate measures to reinforce the border if any threat to our national security occurs," he added.
Russia, which has a military base at Kant airport outside Bishkek, expressed concern about the ongoing tension in Kyrgyzstan. Moscow called on the Kyrgyz government not to use force against protesters to avoid bloodshed. The Interfax news agency quoted sources in Kant as saying Russian forces remain inside the base and that they had been put on a state of higher alert.
The international pressure group Human Rights Watch earlier called on the Kyrgyz government to allow peaceful opposition protests to take place today, and to refrain from force to break up gatherings.
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