At least four people, including three policemen and one civilian, were killed on July 18 in the heart of Kazakhstan’s largest city following an attack on a police station.
Police in Almaty said that the attack began around 11 a.m. local time as a man attempted to force his way into the Almaly district police station. The attacker shot a sentry guard and stole his weapon, officials said in a statement.
The suspect then shot two pursuing officers, the statement said.
Police say that during his escape, the gunmen tried to carjack a civilian, killing him in the process.
Authorities have detained a 27-year old native of the southern Kyzylorda region who is also suspected of killing a woman over the weekend. Police earlier said that another person connected to the attack remained on the loose.
There have scattered reports of separate attack around the city, suggesting a coordinated action, but the details remain highly confused.
Soon after the unrest began, police issued a statement to say an antiterrorism operation was underway and asked the public to avoid large crowds.
“Law enforcement authorities will in good time provide information about all suspect individuals and asks the public to be understanding toward the actions of police and special forces,” the Almaty police said in a statement.
The National Security Committee, or KNB, said in a statement that it had raised the terrorism alert in Almaty to red, which stands for critical. The statement said gunmen attacked the Almaly district police station and an Almaty branch of the KNB.
Large numbers of police and special forces fanned through the center of the city after the attack, closing off several key thoroughfares.
A women commenting in the background in unconfirmed video footage apparently showing one attacker from a distance is heard to say that the man shouted “Allah hu akbar.”
Interfax news agency cited a police source as saying they believe the attackers were members of an “nontraditional religious current.” The term is used by authorities in Kazakhstan as shorthand for violent, radical Islamists.
Shortly after the violence broke out, hunting supplies stores in Almart were ordered shut and security at the outlets intensified. Banks and money exchange points were also closed.
That measure was an evident response to events in the western city of Aktobe on June 5, when a large group of men raided two hunting supplies stores for weapons that they later used to attack a National Guard base in the city. Several servicemen and civilians were killed during those clashes.
Note: This story was updated with additional details from police.
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