Knives blunted in Uzbek city following bout of stabbings

Knives have been blunted in a city in Uzbekistan following a wave of stabbings, police have said.

Officers targeted blades used by traders in the main markets of Andijan in a bid to combat knife crime, according to police.

More than 350 knives were reportedly blunted and 18 confiscated in the raid in the central Uzbek city.

They shared images of men with kitchen knives lining up to have the blades blunted by a machine, as well as police examining the knives of a local baker.

It was unclear whether souvenir knives on sale at the markets – Andijan is a centre of traditional knife-making crafts – were included.

“Preemptive measures continue to be taken to prevent crime,” police said.

Andijan lies in the Central Asian state’s densely populated Ferghana valley.

In 2005, security forces crushed armed protests in the city, initially blaming Islamist extremism but later acknowledging poverty played a role.

Murder rates in Uzbekistan have dropped under Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who became president in late 2016 and has taken steps to boost economic growth and create jobs by opening up the secretive state.

However, stabbings – which are often spontaneous and result from ordinary quarrels – grab public attention.

Last October, a trader bled to death in broad daylight at a market near the capital Tashkent after being stabbed in an argument with fellow market workers

Reuters