File photo of Kazakh security officers speaking to a gathering of people in wake of violent protests over sharp rise in fuel prices. (Photo by TASS)

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev says constitutional order has mostly been restored in the Central Asian nation as security forces appeared in control of the streets in the country’s main city of Almaty.

An anti-terrorist operation has been launched. The forces of law and order are working hard. Constitutional order has largely been restored in all regions of the country, Tokayev declared in a Friday statement as pockets of protests and unrest reportedly continued in the country, a major oil producer and the world’s top producer of uranium.

Local authorities are in control of the situation. But terrorists are still using weapons and damaging the property of citizens, he further asserted. Therefore, counter-terrorist actions should be continued until the militants are completely eliminated.

The country’s interior ministry also announced that 26 armed criminals had been liquidated and more than 3,000 were detained, adding that 18 police and national guard officers had been killed since the protests began early this week over a sharp hike in fuel prices.

This is while fresh gunshots could still be heard in the morning near the Almaty’s central square, where troops and protesters had battled through much of the previous day, according to international news outlets.

Dozens of people have also been reported killed in clashes on the streets as protesters torched and ransacked public buildings in several cities in the worst violence in Kazakhstan’s 30 years of independence following the disintegration of the former Soviet Union.

Tokayev’s administration further stated that the identity of the detained militants was being established, and the possibility of them belonging to an extremist organization was being investigated.

Tokayev was due to address the nation later on Friday, with his administration calling on residents in Almaty to limit their travelling around the city while the search for the remaining hiding bandits is under way.

Tokayev had emphasized in a televised address on Wednesday that he would act as tough as possible on those who broke the law by staging massive attacks on security forces during the protests.

He further assured Kazakhs that he has no plans to step down after he sacked his cabinet earlier in the day. As president, I am obliged to protect the safety and peace of our citizens, to worry about the integrity of Kazakhstan, the president said.

The unrest started on Sunday, after the government almost doubled fuel prices.

Russia has reacted to the ongoing unrest in Kazakhstan, warning against any outside interference into the internal affairs of the Central Asian nation.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kazakhstan could solve its own problems and it was important that no one interfered from the outside. He also urged dialogue as unprecedented unrest spun out of control.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement it was closely monitoring the situation in its southern neighbor and counting on the soonest possible normalization.

We hope for the earliest possible normalization of the situation in the country, with which Russia is linked by relations of strategic partnership and alliance through fraternal, human contacts.