The chairman of Kyrgyzstan's state committee on national security, Keneshbek Duishebaev, said a group called "Zhayshul Mahdi" (Army of the Righteous Ruler) was responsible for a series of bombings in Bishkek, including one near a synagogue last autumn and one outside a sports complex, as well as a recent attempted bombing outside a Bishkek police station.
Duishebaev said the leader of the group, whom he identified as Sovetbek Islamov, was killed during a security operation.
Duishebaev said the group has 16 members: 15 Kyrgyz nationals and one Russian. He said of those, 11 are under arrest, two are dead and three are currently being sought.
Duishebaev showed journalists a videotape of one the defendants confessing to the bombings.
compiled from agency reports