Sharjah 24 – AFP: Non-emergency employees working for the United States Consulate General in Kazakhstan were authorized Friday to leave the country, the State Department said, as Kazakhstan's president rejected calls for talks with protesters after days of unprecedented unrest.

"On January 7, 2022, the Department approved the voluntary departure of Consulate General Almaty non-emergency U.S. government employees and family members of all Consulate General Almaty U.S. government employees," it said in a statement on Friday night.