Kazakhstan unrest: Troops ordered to fire without warning

Kazakhstan's authoritarian leader says he has ordered security forces to "fire without warning", amid a violent crackdown on anti-government protests.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also said "20,000 bandits" had attacked the main city of Almaty, the epicentre of protests sparked by a fuel price hike.

He blamed foreign-trained "terrorists", without giving evidence.

The interior ministry says 26 "armed criminals" and 18 security officers have been killed so far in the unrest.