Two citizens of Uzbekistan were imprisoned in mid-August in neighboring Tajikistan on charges of espionage. Tajik officials say one of the men is an agent with the Uzbek security service and the other a Defense Ministry officer. There have been several cases during the past six months of Uzbeks being jailed in Tajikistan on charges of spying and "attempting to destabilize" the country. There are indications the Uzbek security service has become more active in Kygyzstan as well -- particularly in the country's south, where many Uzbeks fled after the violence in Andijon in May.
25 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Uzbekistan's chief prosecutor says alleged terrorists among Uzbek refugees evacuated from Kyrgyzstan might carry out attacks anywhere in the world.
24 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- A top U.S. general says he has assured Turkmenistan's President Saparmurat Niyazov that the American military is in the Central Asian region to help bring stability to Afghanistan.
Uzbek refugees being sent by the UN to Romania from Kyrgyzstan last month 23 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Tashkent accuses the United Nations' refugee agency of protecting criminals and terrorists by opposing deportations of Uzbek asylum seekers from Kyrgyzstan.
Uzbek security forces in Andijon in May Two public protests broke out this weekend in the Uzbek city of Samarkand. On 20 August, demonstrators from the city outskirts blocked roads to protest the scheduled destruction of their houses. And yesterday, hundreds of merchants angrily protested a sudden decision to relocate the city's main market. As RFE/RL reports, the Samarkand protests are the first in Uzbekistan since those that ended in a violent government crackdown in Andijon in May.
21 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Pope Benedict XVI addressed a Mass near Cologne, Germany, today that drew an estimated 1 million Roman Catholic worshippers as he prepared to conclude a visit marked by attempts to reach out to leaders of other religions.
Pope Benedict XVI (file photo) 20 August 2005 -- Pope Benedict XVI today urged Muslims to join forces with Christians in trying to combat the spread of terrorism.
More than 400 Uzbek refugees have already fled, aided by a UN-aided transfer to Romania (file photo) Bishkek, 20 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- At least three Uzbek nationals who say they fled their country after the May crackdown in Andijon showed up today at the United Nations' regional office for refugees in the southern Kyrgyz city of Osh, according to RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service.
Uzbek children in Zahedan Native Uzbeks living in Iran gathered yesterday to stage protests outside a number of European embassies in the capital Tehran. Their demand -- to be granted political asylum in the West. Iran's Uzbek refugees typically fled their country in the 1990s, following a state crackdown on religious Muslims. Now, they are unable to return home, prevented by Uzbek authorities who accuse them of being members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) terrorist organization. But the refugees deny the claims, and speak only about the hardship of life in exile in Iran.
18 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- A Bishkek court granted today a request by three Uzbeks who were seeking refugee status in Kyrgyzstan, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reported.
17 August 2005 (RFE/RL) -- A group of Uzbeks held a peaceful protest outside the Dutch Embassy in the Iranian capital Tehran today, RFE/RL reported.
Uzbek soldiers in Andijon in May The outside world has received few accounts of life in Andijon since 12-13 May. In a series of reports broadcast on 10-12 August, RFE/RL provided a rare glimpse of the fear lurking behind the superficial normalcy that has settled over the city since the bloody events of May. Because of the fear of government reprisals, RFE/RL has concealed the identities of the people with whom it spoke.
Load more
![RFE/RL President Jamie Fly: "It is an outrage that this law targets [journalists'] work and jeopardizes their security in an attempt to silence them and deprive Russian citizens of their right to seek reliable information."](https://gdb.rferl.org/A1D7C4EB-FB44-4D9C-91CA-2D0355E89C9F_w100_r1.jpg)
![RFE/RL President Jamie Fly: "It is an outrage that this law targets [journalists'] work and jeopardizes their security in an attempt to silence them and deprive Russian citizens of their right to seek reliable information."](https://gdb.rferl.org/A1D7C4EB-FB44-4D9C-91CA-2D0355E89C9F_w33_r1.jpg)
