Kazakhstan president vows to destroy ‘bandits and terrorists’ behind protests

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev tells security forces to use lethal force without warning'

The president of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, has promised an uncompromising crackdown on demonstrators in the country, telling security forces they should use lethal force without warning" against protesters he called bandits and terrorists".

On Friday, relative calm returned to Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city and the centre of recent tumult, and some residents ventured out for the first time in several days. They found looted shops, shattered glass and many burnt-out cars, with the grim atmosphere intensified by the thick mist enveloping the city.