(JTA) — The violence in Kyrgyzstan’s capital city has forced a Jewish school to cancel classes and temporarily shut down.
The ORT school in Bishkek closed Wednesday, the first day back from Passover break, as violence broke out between anti-government protesters and riot police, leaving more than 40 people dead and prompting the country’s president to flee. Kyrgyzstan authorities declared a national state of emergency on Wednesday, and some reports said the government had been overthrown.
The school will remain closed until Monday, at which time the situation will be reevaluate, ORT officials said.
Relations between the central Asian country’s 1,500 Jews – almost all of whom live in Bishkek – and the Muslim majority are very good, according to World ORT.
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