Two Kazakh nationals were detained by police officers in the Jaihun (formerly Qumsangir) district of Khatlon province on May 20 at around 10:00 pm while attempting to illegally cross the Tajik-Afghan border, according to the Interior Ministry’s website.
The detainees – the 31-year-old Askar Ushakov and the 27-year-old Zholay Shamsuddin – said that they were allegedly going to get to Saudi Arabia via Afghanistan in order to perform the Hajj.
Criminal proceedings have been instituted against the detained trespassers and an investigation is under way.
