Uzbekistan Says Missiles Fired From Afghanistan Damaged Houses

Uzbek soldiers guard a checkpoint over the Amu Darya River, which separates Uzbekistan and Afghanistan, near Termez. (file photo)

The Uzbek Foreign Ministry has said that five missiles fired on July 5 from Afghanistan at a city in southeastern Uzbekistan caused no injuries but slightly damaged four homes.

The missiles landed in Termez, a city on the Amu Darya River in the Surxandaryo region.

The ministry said that Uzbek authorities were attempting to clarify the cause of the incident with the Afghan side.

There has been no official comment on reports that Uzbek fighter planes took off after the incident. Nor has there been official comment on a video purporting to show one of the damaged houses.

The shelling was unrelated to unrest in the Central Asian country that left 18 people dead in the restive autonomous region of Karakalpakstan. The Prosecutor-General's Office said on July 4 that the people were killed during unrest over the weekend.

Protests broke out last week after changes initiated by President Shavkat Mirziyoev were proposed to the constitution, including the removal of language that guaranteed the right of Karakalpakstan to seek independence should citizens choose to do so in a referendum.

Mirziyoev has since backed off the plans and said the language would not be removed from the constitution.