 The Russian republic of Chechnya is checking a report that Ruslan Gelayev, a rebel commander, was killed by security forces, Interfax said, citing Akhmad Kadyrov, the Chechen president. Kadyrov didn't provide any details of the report of the rebel leader's death. ``There are no objective data confirming this beyond a shadow of a doubt,'' he told Interfax yesterday. ``The fewer rebel unit commanders talked about by the population and the world media, the better,'' he said. The Chechen government was involved in talks with Gelayev through mediators, Kadyrov said, according to Interfax. ``The mediators said he is prepared to lay down arms, but he did nothing tangible,'' Kadyrov said. |