Kazakhstan to investigate police violence

Prosecutors in Kazakhstan said they were examining whether police used excessive force in response to oil strikes in the western city of Zhanaozen. Clashes between security forces and demonstrators followed oil strikes Zhanaozen in mid-December. At least 15 people were killed in the violence. A video circulated on YouTube shows demonstrators apparently getting shot by riot police, though security officials claimed victims were struck by ricochets. The prosecutor general last week extended an invitation to the United Nations to investigate the violence. Nurdaulet Suindikov, a spokesman for the prosecutor general, said an internal investigation would look into whether police used excessive force by firing on protesters with apparent attempt to kill, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports. "Bullets are being examined, too, to determine what kind of bullets they are, and from which type of weapon," the spokesman said. He added that not all of the deaths reported during the clashes were linked to the police. At least one person was killed, he said, by "hooligans." Oil workers in Zhanaozen are calling for better wages and improved working conditions. The government accuses a subsidiary of the state-run energy company of not addressing protester demands.