Uzbekistan Shuts Border With Kyrgyzstan For Independence Day

BISHKEK -- Uzbekistan unilaterally closed its border with Kyrgyzstan for two weeks as of August 28, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

The Uzbek side said the reason is its planned celebrations of the country's Independence Day on September 1 and marking of the 2,200th anniversary of Tashkent, the capital.

The celebrations are expected to last for several days.

In May this year, several insurgents attacked police in the Uzbek cities of Khanabad and Andijan near the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border.

Tashkent officially accused the Kyrgyz Border Guard Service, saying the attackers entered the Uzbek territory from Kyrgyzstan. Kyrgyz authorities denied the accusations.