Photo source: Radio Free Europe By Naveed Qazi | Editor, Globe Upfront Deadly clashes erupted along the Tajikistan–Kyrgyzstan border in late April and early May 2021, marking one of the most serious confrontations between the two neighbours since independence. Reuters reported that the fighting left more than fifty people dead and hundreds wounded, with Kyrgyz authorities evacuating over 51,000 civilians from the conflict zone. Human Rights Watch noted that homes and schools were destroyed, and villagers on both sides uploaded images of burning houses to social media, underscoring the brutality of the confrontation. Violence along this frontier stretches back at least fifteen years, usually localised to villages near poorly marked or unmarked sections of the border. The April 2021 escalation began when Tajik citizens attempted to install surveillance cameras at a water‑intake station near Kok‑Tash, which distributes water to Kyrgyz territory. Bahoviddin Bahodurzoda, the mayor of ...