The U.S. government has trained and equipped Uzbek troops and police - the same forces who opened fire without warning on some 2,000 demonstrators this month in this eastern city. Now international groups are urging Washington to reconsider its aid and involvement.
President Islam Karimov has rejected calls for an independent inquiry into the crackdown. The government claims 173 were killed, including 36 troops. But human rights groups allege that hundreds died when on May 13 Uzbek forces fired on demonstrators who seized government buildings and freed a jail in anger over the prosecution of 23 businessmen for alleged Islamic extremism.
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