According to the reports, the former president of Kyrgyzstan, accused of initiating deadly riots in the country, in turn blames drug dealers and religious extremists for the violence.

RIA Novosti has said that Kurmanbek Bakiyev, ousted as president during opposition protests in April and now in exile in Belarus, has strongly denied any connection to the riots between ethnic Kyrgyz and minority Uzbeks that broke out in the southern Kyrgyz city of Osh on June 11.

He said, instead, criminal elements and religious fanatics are responsible.

Bakiyev said, "We can talk about people involved in drug dealing, as well as about religious extremists, of which there are lots both in Kyrgyzstan's north and south."

Bakiyev further said that he would not participate in Kyrgyzstan politics "in any way."

RIA Novosti also reported that the Kyrgyz interim authorities have asked Belarus to extradite Bakiyev.

It is urging the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe to act on Kyrgyz government requests for assistance by deploying a security assistance mission to the country, Human Rights Watch said in a release on Wednesday.

Veronika Szente Goldston, HRW Europe and Central Asia advocacy director, said, "People in Kyrgyzstan need urgent protection, and the OSCE is uniquely placed to provide it." (With Inputs from Agencies)