On Thursday, July 8, a shooting has been reported between the Kyrgyz and Tajik forces on the border between both states. According to the press center of Tajikistan’s border service, two people were injured in the shooting, TASS reports.
The press center of Tajikistan’s border service informed that on Thursday afternoon, "four Kyrgyz border guards illegally crossed the state border of the Republic of Tajikistan in the area of Rosrovut, Devashtich District, Sughd Region." Reportedly, the trespassers were armed with AK-47s, their goal was to steal several horses belonging to local residents and transport them to Kyrgyzstan. "In response to the warning of the Tajik border guards of a border violation, the Kyrgyz troops opened fire from automatic weapons. Two trespassers were injured after the Tajik border guards returned fire," the message says.
According to TASS, the administration of the Batken Region of Kyrgyzstan confirmed the border shooting.
"The shooting took place on the territory of the Leilek District of the republic, the details are being verified," a representative of the administration said, adding that there is no information about casualties or injuries so far. Both sides reported that representatives of both countries’ border services have been sent to the incident site. Representatives of Kyrgyzstan’s Batken Region and Tajikistan’s Sughd Region are also meeting there.
It's worth noting that the Tajik-Kyrgyz border spans about 950 km, with dozens of disputed areas remaining since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The latest serious conflict that ended in an armed confrontation between the Kyrgyz and Tajik military took place in late April-early May when several dozen people were killed and over a hundred were injured in the clashes.