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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Russia claims Taliban and Chechen role in Uzbekistan unrest |
| 2005-06-03 |
| The Taliban, Chechen rebels and extremists from the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan played a role in an insurrection last month in Uzbekistan that was put down by Uzbek authorities, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday in Vladivostok. "We have information that Islamic extremists from the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), the remnants of the Taliban and some Chechen terrorists had a role in events in Uzbekistan," Lavrov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying. Uzbek authorities have accused the Hizb ut Tahrir Islamic movement of being behind the insurrection in Andijan in eastern Uzbekistan. Hizbi Tahrir, which is gaining popularity in Central Asia, says it wants to topple secular leadership in the region through peaceful means. But the IMU is a violent militant group, which has claimed responsibility for shootings and kidnappings in Central Asia. The group is aimed primarily at ousting Uzbek President Islam Karimov and was thought to have been decimated by the US-led war against the Taliban in Afghanistan. |
| Posted by:Fred |