NEXT TV station has been suspended by Kyrgyzstan and its director, Taalai Duishembiev, detained over allegations of incitement in light of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Akmat Alagushev, the lawyer for Mr Duishembiev, confirmed to RFE/RL on March 4 that Mr Alagushev had been detained and that pretrial restrictions will be decided.

The State Committee for National Security (SCNS) said it opened a criminal case into NEXT TV over posts on Telegram and Facebook where it claimed Kyrgyzstan had agreed to provide military assistance to Russia in Ukraine.

This move has raised opposition from Kyrgyzstan’s media and civil society members who have called for authorities to respect press freedom.

“We consider the action against NEXT TV as a continuation of the movement to suppress freedom of speech in Kyrgyzstan,” the bodies said in a joint statement.

The telegram posts quoted the exiled former chief of the Committee for National Security (KNB) of neighboring Kazakhstan, Alnur Musaev, saying that Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan had agreed to support Moscow’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by sending troops to help Russia.

The claims of support had been denied by the Kyrgyz Defense Ministry and the Foreign Ministry urged local media to report on official government statements only.