Ten detained in Kazakhstan on suspicion of preparing violent coup

The Committee for National Security (KNB) of Kazakhstan reports the exposure of a group that, according to the investigation, was preparing a violent change of the constitutional order in the western region of the country. This became known on 2 November from an official statement by the agency's press service.

The special operation took place on 30 October 2026 in the city of Atyrau. Under the coordination of the prosecution authorities, law enforcement officers simultaneously detained ten individuals. They have been charged with establishing an extremist organisation, leading it or participating in it, as well as spreading terrorist propaganda and inciting religious hatred.

Detainees accused of preparing forceful actions

The investigation's version is that the group members intended to change the foundations of the constitutional order in western Kazakhstan by force. The names of the suspects, their ages, and their specific roles within the group structure are currently not disclosed.

During searches at the residences of the case subjects, special service officers seized firearms, narcotic substances, religious attributes, literature, and other physical evidence. All these materials have been attached to the criminal proceedings.

The agency also noted that some of the detainees had previous convictions for terrorist and general criminal offences.

Activity of three illegal training centres halted

A separate line of investigation became the activity of illegal educational hubs. According to the KNB, the group members organised three underground training centres attended by children and teenagers. During the operation, law enforcement officers halted the operation of these facilities.

The official statement does not specify how many minors were in these centres, what the content of the lessons was, or whether they were linked to the spread of extremist ideas. As noted by the Kazakhstani publication Kursiv, the KNB has not yet released information on the number of children and the training programme, limiting itself to a statement about the complete cessation of the activity of all three centres.

Investigation status and case details

Currently, the case is at the pre-trial investigation stage. The Committee for National Security of Kazakhstan emphasised that other details are not subject to disclosure in accordance with Article 201 of the country's Code of Criminal Procedure.

There is no official information on when exactly the suspects planned to realise their intentions, what resources they had at their disposal, or whether there were other participants in the group. As reported by Deutsche Welle, all ten were detained within the framework of the investigation into the activities of a probable extremist group.

The charges brought by law enforcement officers currently remain an investigation version. No court decision establishing the guilt of the detainees has been published.

Recall that in Kazakhstan, at the request of Russia, Ukrainian citizen Lyubov Rozhanska was previously detained, who came to Astana to pick up her minor grandson and return him to Ukraine.