Citing two senior government officials, Radio Liberty’s Uzbek Service report Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has dismissed powerful longtime National Security Service (NSS) chief Rustam Inoyatov, removing an influential insider who had been seen as his rival.
Mirziyoyev told a meeting of the Prosecutor-General's Office and the NSS on January 31 that Inoyatov, who is 73 and led the NSS for almost 23 years, had been replaced by Ikhtiyor Abdullayev, the officials said.
They said that Mirziyoyev, who has reshuffled Uzbekistan's ruling elite since he came to power in 2016, strongly criticized the way the security service had been run.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to make public statements about the matter.
Inoyatov, who holds the rank of colonel-general, was one of a relatively small number of senior officials who had retained their posts since Karimov's death was announced in September 2016.
The NSS, the main successor of the Soviet-era KGB in Uzbekistan, is considered among the most closed and powerful agencies in Uzbekistan.
Inoyatov, who has avoided publicity and preferred to stay in the shadows, was one of the most influential officials in Uzbekistan for years.
Mirziyoyev lambasted the security service, Interior Ministry, and Prosecutor-General's Office for what he called “systemic violations of ordinary people's rights,” including the principle of presumed innocence.
Mirziyoyev also stressed the importance of reforms in the address, saying that government actions must be based on democratic principles.
Ikhtiyor Abdullayev, 51, was the prosecutor-general until his appointment to replace Inoyatov.
