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Kyrgyz Interim Government Arrests Bakiev Supporters In South


Ousted Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev
Ousted Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev
Kyrgyzstan's interim government says it has arrested a number of allies of exiled President Kurmanbek Bakiev in the south of the country.

Faizulla Rakhmanov, the self-proclaimed governor of Jalal-Abad, was among those reported by the Reuters news agency to have been detained.

The interim government now says it is in control of Jalal-Abad, a stronghold of Bakiev support.

In exile in Belarus, Bakiev said he still considers himself president and called on international leaders not to recognize the interim government.

Bakiev fled the country after a government crackdown left at least 85 protesters dead at the start of the month.

The leader of the interim government, Roza Otunbaeva, said the statement was the "bravado of a man agonizing over his own helplessness."

The interim government has announced a referendum on the country's constitution will be held in June and parliamentary elections in October.

compiled from agency reports

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