Kazakhstan death toll topped 225 during days of unrest

They quickly spread nationwide, widened into a general protest against the country’s authoritarian government and descended into violence within several days, especially in Almaty, the country’s largest city.

Protesters stormed government buildings and set them ablaze.

At the request of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation sent a force of more than 2,000 soldiers, mostly Russians, to act as peacekeepers.

The Russian Defence Ministry said Saturday that its troops had returned home, but it was unclear if forces from other alliance countries remained in Kazakhstan.