Russian troops ambushed during search for BasayevRuslan Isayev, North Caucasus - A special troop detachment from the Russian Defence Ministry was ambushed by Chechen guerrillas near the village of Ersenoi in the Vedensky district during an operation to arrest Chechen field commander Shamil Basayev.
A source in the Chechen Interior Ministry said that during the battle, which lasted less than one hour, two Russian officers were killed and three wounded. The guerrillas managed to escape and a search is now underway to find them.
The same source reported that on Monday two guerrillas gave themselves up to the Russians in Urus-Martan and Gudermes. These men, allegedly from a group around Chechen resistance leader Aslan Maskhadov, are now being interrogated as to the whereabouts of their leader. (T/E) |
