Heavy gunfire reported in Kazakhstan as president seeks to regain control

Heavy gunfire reported in Kazakhstan's biggest city Almaty as authorities try to regain control amid ongoing mass protests.

Kazakhstan's president said that uprisings and protests throughout the country are stabilizing after heavy gunfire was reported through Thursday night in Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city.

Government security forces are trying to regain control after mass protests rocked the country.

President Kassym-Jopart Tokayev has been vocal about quelling the unrest triggered by a sudden hike in fuel prices -- unrest that has snowballed into unprecedented demonstrations against the authoritarian regime that has ruled Kazakhstan since the fall of the Soviet Union.

The turmoil prompted Tokayev to call in foreign troops from a Russian-led military alliance for help.