JALALABAD, Kyrgyzstan (Reuters) - Kyrgyz leader Roza Otunbayeva pledged on Monday to press ahead with a referendum in six days' time for the sake of stability, as violence flared again in the Central Asian state.

Kyrgyz government forces swept into an ethnic Uzbek village Monday, beating men and women with rifle butts in an assault that left at least two dead and more than 20 wounded, witnesses told The Associated Press.

ST. PETERSBURG -- Former Russian Energy Minister Yuri Shafranik says he is concerned about the threat of a major oil spill in the Caspian Sea, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.

Fearing for their lives, ethnic Uzbeks in Kyrgyzstan refuse calls to return to their homes

Sir, I read with surprise Gillian Tett's article "Lessons to be learnt from Kazakhstan's rescue model" (June 4) about the restructuring of BTA, one of the largest banks in Kazakhstan.

Whoever does not help to resolve the conflict in Kyrgyzstan, must then deal with the consequences of this omission