BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 7
Trend:
Suspension of Kazakhstan's Almaty airport has been extended until evening of January 7, Khabar-24 TV channel said, Trend reports via TASS.
The airport was previously expected to resume operations by afternoon on Jan. 7.
On January 6, the country’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said at a meeting of the Security Council that terrorist gangs in Almaty seized an airport and five planes, including foreign ones. Later, as a result of a special operation, the airport was liberated.
In connection with the aggravated situation in the country, the work of the airports of Aktobe and Aktau was also blocked.
Kazakhstan's government announced late Jan. 4 that it was restoring some price caps on liquefied petroleum gas, after the rare protests reached Almaty following a sharp rise in the price of the fuel at the start of the year.
Many Kazakhs have converted their cars to run on LPG, which is far cheaper than gasoline as a vehicle fuel in Kazakhstan because of price caps. But the government argued that the low price was unsustainable and lifted the caps on Jan. 1.
After the price of the fuel spiked, big demonstrations erupted on Jan. 2 in certain parts of the country. Public protests are illegal in the country unless their organizers file a notice in advance. Following the development of the situation, the government declared a state of emergency all over the country.