A prominent international rights group has urged Kyrgyzstan to free two jailed activists who it says were imprisoned because of their investigation into rights infringements.Human Rights Watch said Thursday that Bakhrom Khamroyev and Izzatilla Rakhmatillayev were arrested in the southern town of Osh while researching claims of abuse against alleged religious extremists.
Khamroyev works for Russia-based Memorial Human Rights Center, whose director was barred entry into the Central Asian nation in February.
Government opponents says political freedoms have steadily declined since President Kurmanbek Bakiyev came to power in 2005.
Kyrgyzstan hosts a U.S. air base serving as a supply transit point for troops in nearby Afghanistan.
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