UPDATE - Death toll in Kyrgyz-Tajik border clashes rises to 36

UPDATE - Death toll in Kyrgyz-Tajik border clashes rises to 36

12 more bodies brought to hospitals on Sunday, says Kyrgyzstan's Health Ministry

UPDATES WITH TAJIK CLAIMS, CHANGES BYLINE, DATELINE, EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Nazir Aliyev Tayfur and Bahtiyar Abdulkerimov

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan / TASHKENT, Uzbekistan (AA) – Kyrgyzstan's death toll from recent border clashes with Tajikistan rose to 36, with 129 others getting injured, its Health Ministry said on Sunday.

Another 12 bodies were brought to medical facilities in Batken region, which borders Tajikistan and where forces of the former Soviet republics clashed over a border dispute, which is said to be poorly demarcated. The previous death toll stood at 24.

Kyrgyzstan said nearly 136,000 residents were also evacuated from villages near Tajikistan.

Meanwhile, Tajikistan's Foreign Ministry said 25 civilians, including children, had lost their lives on Friday when the Kyrgyz side targeted Tajik villages.

In another statement, the Tajik Border Troops said situation on the border is relatively calm, with occasional cease-fire violations.

"Tajikistan is in favor of restoring security and stability on the border," it said, adding: “It directs all its efforts to negotiate and resolve the dispute through diplomacy."

Border clashes started on Wednesday, with the two sides later agreeing to a cease-fire. Kyrgyzstan declared a state of emergency in Batken late Friday.

In a statement on Saturday, the UN secretary-general's spokesman called on the leadership of the two countries to engage in dialogue for a lasting cease-fire. "Both sides should take full advantage of the existing mechanisms on the ground to defuse tensions," Stephane Dujarric said.


* Writing by Ahmet Gencturk and Merve Berker

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