Hundreds dead in Uzbek clashes

FAMILIES of the hundreds of people killed when Uzbek troops opened fire to quell protests in Andizhan buried their dead yesterday as witnesses told of bloody mayhem in which women and children were gunned down.

"They shot at us like rabbits", a boy in his late teens said recalling the horror of troops rampaging through the town square on Friday where 3,000 protesters had rallied in support of rebels holed up in a state building with police hostages.

A Russian news agency also reported that Uzbek troops had fired on civilians trying to flee into neighbouring Kyrgyzstan to escape the violence.