02:53Mandatory credit: RIA Novosti
Archpriest and Keeper of the Ascension Cathedral of Almaty Alexander Suvorov talked about the difficult and 'turbulent' situation in the city in a phone call on Wednesday.
According to the church worker, the state of affairs in Almaty has "critically" changed. Now the city has completely disabled mobile and fixed Internet, but during the day it was possible to go online using a VPN.
"The situation in the city is very unsettled, that is, the protesters have seized some weapons stores, the streets of the city have been blocked, the military and police have been disarmed," Suvorov added.
As the archpriest noted, "the protesters have no complaints about the churches."
"This morning the crowd passed by the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in the northwest part of the city. There was a fight with the police, but the protesters were quite friendly towards the church, there were no attempts at provocations and attacks towards the churches," the man said.
Suvorov also noted that due to the curfew imposed from 23:00 to 07:00, the night worships were cancelled. For the same reason, there will be no Christmas services in the city. Believers in Almaty are advised not to gather, the archpriest added.
Protests are underway in Almaty, Uralsk, Aktau, Aktobe, Shymkent and other cities. The regions are experiencing problems with communication, internet connection and television broadcasting.
According to Kazakhstani media, demonstrators are storming buildings, setting up barricades, clashing with security forces and causing arson.
Unauthorised rallies began in the Mangistau region of Kazakhstan on Sunday after prices for liquefied gas rose from 60 to 120 tenge (€0.12 - €0.24) per litre from January 1. The price hike came after the government lifted price controls on liquefied petroleum gas citing a need to liberalise the market.
Kazakhstan: Almaty priest describes 'turbulent' situation in metropolis amid ongoing protests *STILLS*
Archpriest and Keeper of the Ascension Cathedral of Almaty Alexander Suvorov talked about the difficult and 'turbulent' situation in the city in a phone call on Wednesday.
According to the church worker, the state of affairs in Almaty has "critically" changed. Now the city has completely disabled mobile and fixed Internet, but during the day it was possible to go online using a VPN.
"The situation in the city is very unsettled, that is, the protesters have seized some weapons stores, the streets of the city have been blocked, the military and police have been disarmed," Suvorov added.
As the archpriest noted, "the protesters have no complaints about the churches."
"This morning the crowd passed by the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in the northwest part of the city. There was a fight with the police, but the protesters were quite friendly towards the church, there were no attempts at provocations and attacks towards the churches," the man said.
Suvorov also noted that due to the curfew imposed from 23:00 to 07:00, the night worships were cancelled. For the same reason, there will be no Christmas services in the city. Believers in Almaty are advised not to gather, the archpriest added.
Protests are underway in Almaty, Uralsk, Aktau, Aktobe, Shymkent and other cities. The regions are experiencing problems with communication, internet connection and television broadcasting.
According to Kazakhstani media, demonstrators are storming buildings, setting up barricades, clashing with security forces and causing arson.
Unauthorised rallies began in the Mangistau region of Kazakhstan on Sunday after prices for liquefied gas rose from 60 to 120 tenge (€0.12 - €0.24) per litre from January 1. The price hike came after the government lifted price controls on liquefied petroleum gas citing a need to liberalise the market.
Mandatory credit: RIA Novosti
Archpriest and Keeper of the Ascension Cathedral of Almaty Alexander Suvorov talked about the difficult and 'turbulent' situation in the city in a phone call on Wednesday.
According to the church worker, the state of affairs in Almaty has "critically" changed. Now the city has completely disabled mobile and fixed Internet, but during the day it was possible to go online using a VPN.
"The situation in the city is very unsettled, that is, the protesters have seized some weapons stores, the streets of the city have been blocked, the military and police have been disarmed," Suvorov added.
As the archpriest noted, "the protesters have no complaints about the churches."
"This morning the crowd passed by the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in the northwest part of the city. There was a fight with the police, but the protesters were quite friendly towards the church, there were no attempts at provocations and attacks towards the churches," the man said.
Suvorov also noted that due to the curfew imposed from 23:00 to 07:00, the night worships were cancelled. For the same reason, there will be no Christmas services in the city. Believers in Almaty are advised not to gather, the archpriest added.
Protests are underway in Almaty, Uralsk, Aktau, Aktobe, Shymkent and other cities. The regions are experiencing problems with communication, internet connection and television broadcasting.
According to Kazakhstani media, demonstrators are storming buildings, setting up barricades, clashing with security forces and causing arson.
Unauthorised rallies began in the Mangistau region of Kazakhstan on Sunday after prices for liquefied gas rose from 60 to 120 tenge (€0.12 - €0.24) per litre from January 1. The price hike came after the government lifted price controls on liquefied petroleum gas citing a need to liberalise the market.