Kazakhstan's Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu detained

Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Murat Nurtleu, has reportedly been detained, law enforcement sources confirm.

Businessman Gadzhi Gadzhiev and several senior officers from the National Security Committee were also apprehended, The Caspian Post reports citing Kazakh media.

Nurtleu was taken into custody at his residence, a day before returning from the SCO summit in China. Both he and Gadzhiev underwent searches.

A key figure in Kazakhstan’s power structure, Nurtleu wields significant influence, largely stemming from his longstanding ties with the country’s security forces-a network he began cultivating during his tenure as deputy chairman of the National Security Committee in the Qantara period.