| A unit of Chechen guerillas was eliminated in a clash with a federal special task force in a wooded area in Chechnya's Gudermes district, a spokesman for the regional headquarters for the antiterrorist operation in the North Caucasus told Interfax Saturday. "In the course of a search operation, information was received from local residents that armed rebels were hiding in the woods between the villages of Braguny and Komsomolskoye. The sources said that the rebels had been staying in empty houses during the day, disguised as local residents, and gathered at their base in the woods at night," the spokesman said. A federal unit, which was sent to the area to verify the information, spotted a base on the bank of the Terek River where ten rebels were hiding. "Taking into account the situation and the firm stance of Chechen people towards members of underground gangs, a decision was made in coordination with the command that the discovered unit be wiped out. Five guerillas were killed on the spot and the others fled. The federal forces did not suffer any losses," the spokesman said. |