Security forces appeared to be in control of the streets of Kazakhstan’s main city of Almaty on Friday morning a day after Russian troops were called in to restore order.
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev issued a statement yesterday declaring that constitutional order had “largely been restored in all regions of the country.”
Dozens of people have reportedly been killed in clashes on the streets and protesters have torched and ransacked public buildings in several cities in the worst violence in the Central Asian republic’s 30 years of independence.
On Friday, Kazakhstan’s interior ministry reported that 26 “armed criminals” had been “liquidated” and more than 3,000 detained, while 18 police and national guard service members had been killed since the start of the protests.
Demonstrations that began as a response to a fuel price hike have swelled into a broad movement against the government and ex-leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, 81, the longest-serving ruler of any former Soviet state.
Source: Radio Poland, Reuters
Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki recently announced plans to further lower value-added tax on fuels as Poland combats rising inflation.
In an interview with Polish news outlet Interia on Friday, Morawiecki announced his decision “to lower the VAT rate on fuel from 23 percent to 8 percent.” He added that the VAT reduction would come into effect as early as the beginning of February and remain in effect for a period of at least six months.
Poland has already reduced taxes on natural gas and electricity to battle rising prices. Last month, Poland’s Finance Minister Tadeusz Ko?ci?ski announced that the value-added tax on food would be reduced from 5 to 0 percent in the country, starting in February.
The Polish central bank expects inflation in Poland to average 7.6 percent in 2022, a marked increase from 2021.
Source: Radio Poland, PAP
Polish tennis star Iga ?wi?tek has made it through to the semifinals of the Adelaide International tennis tournament in Australia and will face world number one Ashleigh Barty today.
?wi?tek powered past two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 in their three-set encounter yesterday, as she seeks to defend her Adelaide International title from last year.
The semi-final match between fifth-seeded ?wi?tek and top-seeded Barty kicks off at 9:30 am Warsaw time today.
Source: Radio Poland, adelaideinternational.com.au
The Museum of the Second World War in Gda?sk has invited the public to a concert of unusual Christmas carols this evening, performed in the style of the interwar period.
The Warsaw Sentimental Orchestra will perform a variety of widely-known and long-forgotten works, which the orchestra has collected and occasionally rewritten as part of their “Christmas Carol Songbook.”
The small ensemble of vocalists, clarinet, trumpet, accordion, upright bass, guitar, and mandolin will perform songs from the repertoire of Adam Aston, Mieczys?aw Fogg, and other artists from the interwar period.
The concert will begin at 17:00 tonight in the Jan Olszewski conference room of the museum. Tickets are PLN 30 (regular) or PLN 20 (discounted) and can be purchased in-person at the museum or online.
Source: Radio Gda?sk
Weather
Today will be mostly cloudy and cold, with very little chance of precipitation and a gentle breeze coming in from the southwest. Temperatures will peak around a high of 2°C, or 35°F, today, dropping to a chilly overnight low of -2°C or 29°F. Temperatures will remain at or below freezing into early next week, with a chance for clearer skies and some additional sunshine returning tomorrow.
Elizabeth Peck
