BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- Blaming the interim government in Kyrgyzstan for ethnic conflict that erupted during the summer is absurd, the country's new prime minister said.
The interim government has fought for control since an April coup. Hundreds were killed during summer violence between Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks in the southern regions of Osh and Jalal Abad.
Kyrgyz Prime Minister Almazbek Atambayev said ethnic tensions in the south of the country were overlooked by previous administrations.
"I think the main problem is that earlier reasons of the conflicts in the south of Kyrgyzstan weren't examined and guilty persons weren't punished," he was quoted by the English-language Kyrgyz news agency 24 as saying.
The Kyrgyz Ministry of Health reported that more than 400 people were killed during summer violence between ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyzs.
The number of people affected in Osh alone stands at more than 2,500, the ministry added.
Ethnic violence gripped the southern Kyrgyz cities following an April coup that forced deposed President Kurmanbek Bakiyev to flee the country.
Kyrgyz human rights activists described the situation in southern Kyrgyzstan as "tense," saying members of the Uzbek community still have trouble trusting state security officials.
