The Bush administration has called for an international investigation into last week's violence in the eastern Uzbek city of Andijan, and said it was becoming increasingly clear that Uzbek forces deliberately fired on protesters. "Reports being compiled paint a very disturbing picture of the events and the government of Uzbekistan's reaction to them," U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said in a statement, which was carried today by CNN. The U.S. move follows an earlier call by the United Nations for an independent investigation into the killings and an assessment of reports of excessive use of force by authorities. In a statement, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour urged the Uzbek government "to guarantee the rights Uzbekistan has pledged to uphold under international law, including the freedoms of assembly and expression."
