On the morning of August 11, the government of Uzbekistan detained Igor Rotar at Tashkent airport. Rotar has been a Jamestown analyst since at least 1998, and is a regular contributor to Eurasia Daily Monitor. He has been unable to communicate since his arrest.
The Uzbek authorities are refusing to make any comment on the detention, but reliable sources have indicated that the detention was ordered “for political reasons at the highest levels” and that the detention was carried out by the Immigration Service and Border Guards, on the instructions of the National Security Service secret police.
Rotar is a frequent contributor to Eurasia Daily Monitor, writing on issues including instability, religious freedom, security, and terrorism in Central Asia. His last contribution was on August 8th.
BAFL frequently posts on its website articles from Eurasia Daily Monitor.
We encourage readers to contact the Embassy of Uzbekistan (202-887-5300;embassy@Uzbekistan.org ) or the Uzbekistan desk at the U.S. Department of State (202-647-9031) to voice their concerns.
