(RIA Novosti) - Fifty-nine militants including six warlords have been killed in special operations in Chechnya since the beginning of the year, the republic's interior minister said Friday. Ruslan Alkhanov said police in the troubled North Caucasus republic detained 291 suspected militants during the period, and that 127 gunmen voluntarily turned themselves in. "Only one terrorist attack has been committed in Chechnya since the beginning of the year, compared to nine in the same period of last year," he told an interior ministry meeting. Alkhanov also said 55 police officers lost their lives and 113 were wounded in special operations against militants.
Chechnya was devastated by two military campaigns, in 1994-1996 and 1999-2001, after which Moscow significantly scaled back its military presence in the province. However, sporadic fighting and terrorist attacks still occur in the area, despite a widely publicized amnesty campaign announced by Russian authorities. The amnesty followed the killing by federal troops of Chechen warlord and number one terrorist Shamil Basayev, who was behind the 2004 Beslan school siege and other atrocities.
More than 600 militants in Chechnya and adjacent provinces reportedly surrendered their arms last year in response to a six-month amnesty declared by the Russian government on July 15 for those not involved in any serious crimes.