Street fight in Kazakhstan town kills 8, injures 40, official says

MOSCOW — Eight people were killed and 40 injured in an outburst of violence in a town in Kazakhstan where about 30 homes were also set on fire, the country’s interior minister said Saturday.

Erlan Turgumbayev told at a news conference that about 300 people fought on the streets of Masanchi, including firing shots and and throwing rocks.

He did not say what started the conflict, but area residents said on social media that it was an ethnic dispute.

Police and the national guard had brought the situation under control, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Saturday.

Masanchi, near the border with Kyrgyzstan, has a large population of Dungan, who are Muslims of Chinese ancestry.

Turgumbayev said 47 people have been arrested.