‘Dozens’ killed as troops open fire on protesters

SOLDIERS opened fire on thousands of protesters in eastern Uzbekistan yesterday after demonstrators stormed a jail to free 23 men accused of Islamic extremism.

At least 50 people may have been killed in clashes with police and security forces, a protest leader said.

Protesters fell to the ground as the troops surrounded the crowd of some 4,000 and started shooting outside the city’s administration building, which had been seized by the demonstrators. One journalist saw 10 people who apparently had been hit, including at least one dead, and participants in the rally said two more had been killed.