In Kyrgyzstan, at least five people have been killed in a government crackdown on a protest in the capital Bishkek earlier today. Thousands of demonstrators reportedly tried to seize a government building as part of a wave of protest calling for the resignation of Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev. There were reports of police firing live ammunition into the crowds. The Kyrgyz government has declared a nationwide state of emergency. The US has backed Bakiyev since he took office five years ago. The Obama administration has been largely silent on alleged fraud and other abuses in Kyrgyzstan since the Kyrgyz government reversed the closure of a US military base last year. The base has been vital to the US occupation of Afghanistan.