Kazakhstan raises death toll to 225 in days of protests

MOSCOW (AP) — A top law-enforcement official in Kazakhstan says 225 people died during the violent demonstrations that shook the country this month, a significantly higher number than previously announced. Serik Shalabayev in the general prosecutor’s office said 19 police officers or servicemen were among the dead and more than 4,300 people were injured. The previous official death toll was 164. Demonstrations started on Jan. 2 to protest a sharp rise in fuel prices. They quickly spread nationwide and descended into violence, especially in Almaty, the country’s largest city. At the request of Kazakhstan’s leader, the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization sent more than 2,000 soldiers, mostly Russians, to act as peacekeepers. Russia said Saturday its troops had returned home.