Kyrgyzstan's president declares Sept. 19 as national mourning day

ANKARA

Kyrgyzstan's President Sadyr Japarov signed a decree on Sunday, declaring Sept. 19 as a day of national mourning, according to local news agency Kabar.

An armed conflict took place at the Kyrgyz-Tajik border on Sept. 14-17 and resulted in the death of Kyrgyz people.

The Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry also said in a statement that it considers the border clashes on its territory as "a pre-planned armed act of aggression" by Tajikistan.

Meanwhile, Tajikistan held the Kyrgyz side responsible for the clashes, saying they began "aggressive actions against the territorial integrity and inviolability of the state border of Tajikistan using all kinds of firearms."

Kyrgyzstan's Health Ministry announced on Sunday that its death toll from the border clashes reached 46, with 129 others getting injured.

Among the killed, 34 were reportedly from the Kyrgyz side, while the remaining 12 were from the Tajik side, the Emergencies Ministry of Kyrgyzstan noted.

Kyrgyzstan said nearly 136,000 residents were evacuated from villages near Tajikistan, while Tajikistan's Foreign Ministry said 25 civilians, including children, had lost their lives on Friday when the Kyrgyz side targeted Tajik villages.