Eight Rebels Killed In Volatile North Caucasus
April 03, 2012
Eight rebels and one Interior Ministry soldier have been killed in clashes in Russia's volatile North Caucasus region.
In Ingushetia, Russian security forces opened fire on rebels after they failed to stop in the regional capital, Nazran.
Russia's antiterrorist committee, NAK, said all five rebels were killed and two had belts loaded with explosives.
NAK accused the five of plotting terrorist attacks.
In nearby Daghestan, the Interfax news agency reports Russian Interior Ministry forces battled rebels in a forest near the village of Kakirkent.
The report said three rebels and one Interior Ministry soldier were killed in the gun battle.
The Kremlin is struggling to contain an Islamic insurgency in the North Caucasus and outgoing President Dmitry Medvedev has called the North Caucasus separatist movement Russia's top domestic security problem.
Based on Itar-tass, Reuters, and AFP reporting
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