You're reading: Gunbattle breaks out in Kyrgyz south

Kyrgyzstan's security chief says a raid on suspected militants ended in a ferocious gunbattle, leaving five dead.

Kyrgyzstan’s Security Council Secretary Marat Imankulov said four of the suspects were killed Monday, 29, and one blew himself up after troops sought to detain the group in the southern city of Osh. He identified the fatalities as Islamic militants planning terror attacks.

The violence comes ahead of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s visit to Kyrgyzstan set for Friday.

Osh was wracked earlier this year by clashes between ethnic Kyrgyz and minority Uzbeks that left almost 400 dead, most of them Uzbeks. Tensions remain high between the two communities. Uzbeks claim they have been singled out and blamed for the unrest.