Kyrgyzstan's interim government has ruled its security forces can shoot to kill in a bid to quell ethnic clashes which have killed at least 77 in southern regions of Osh and Jalalabad and injured over 1,000.
The ruling is valid in the regions where a state of emergency has been declared, to defend civilians as well as in self-defence, and in case of mass or armed attacks, the decree, agreed at a late-night meeting, said.
The ruling is valid from the moment of signing until the state of emergency is revoked, it said.
Earlier, the interim government appealed to Russia to send peacekeeping troops to restore order after at least 50 people were killed in ethnic riots in the south of the country.
Interim government leader Roza Otunbayeva said: 'We need the entry of outside armed forces to calm the situation down.
'We have appealed to Russia for help and I have already signed such a letter for President Dmitry Medvedev.'
The Russian government's press service said Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Ms Otunbayeva discussed the situation in a telephone call, without giving any further details.
The government has also appealed to retired police and army officers to travel to the southern city of Osh to prevent the clashes escalating into civil war.
'The provisional Kyrgyz government calls on retired police and military officers to contribute to the stabilisation of the situation in Osh,' said government spokesman Azimbek Beknazarov.
'The authorities will be grateful for any volunteers who are ready to help prevent civil war in the south of Kyrgyzstan,' he added.
Mr Beknazarov was speaking from the region where clashes between ethnic Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks broke out on Thursday.
The appeals come as the health ministry issued an updated death toll from the violence, saying at least 50 people have been killed and 650 injured in the clashes.
The previous death toll had stood at 45.
Mr Beknazarov said the situation there remains 'very difficult' despite the state of emergency declared by the government and a curfew on Osh and neighbouring districts.
'Exchanges of fire are continuing and you can hear them everywhere, several buildings are in flames, people are frightened,' he said.
Police officers and soldiers deployed to the troubled zone are exhausted, falling asleep on the roads they were meant to be watching, he added.
'We won't have enough people on the ground to ensure security over the next two days, if we don't get more help,' he warned.
The violence, thought to have been set off by a fight between youths from the different ethnic groups on Thursday, quickly escalated into street battles in which people fought using improvised weapons and firearms.
It comes two weeks before a referendum on the constitution, which is scheduled for 27 June.
Since last April's uprising, which ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiyev and left 87 people dead, foreign leaders have warned of the danger of civil war.
