Russian general: Rebel group near Chechnya eliminated after long battle

AP ^ | Wed Oct 9,11:43 AM ET | YURI BAGROV

[Destro]

Russian general: Rebel group near Chechnya eliminated after long battle

Wed Oct 9,11:43 AM ET

By YURI BAGROV, Associated Press Writer

Maj.-Gen. Valery Gerasimov, center, commander of Russia's 58th army, and other officials look at a flag captured from rebels during fighting near the village of Galashki, 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Nazran, in the Russian republic of Ingushetia near the border with Chechnya, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2002. A Russian military helicopter was shot down early Thursday in Galashki, killing two crewmen, the Russian Defense Ministry said. At least 10 Russian servicemen were killed in fierce fighting with rebels.(AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)

A Russian officer looks at the bodies of Chechen fighters killed in combat near the village of Galashki, 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Nazran in the Russian republic of Ingushetia near the border with Chechnya, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2002. Ten Russian soldiers were killed and 15 wounded in fighting in the region of Galashki over the past 24 hours, said an official in the headquarters of the Russian 58th army. Eighty rebels were also killed, headquarters officials said. Russian news media and military officials routinely inflate Chechen casualty figures.(AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)

VLADIKAVKAZ, Russia - A Russian general claimed Wednesday that federal troops have eliminated the remnants of a rebel group that crossed the border from Georgia, shot down a helicopter and engaged in intense fighting with Russian forces near Chechnya (news - web sites).

Maj. Gen. Vladimir Chirkin, the chief of staff of the 58th army, said the operation against the rebel group in Ingushetia, a Russian region next to Chechnya, has been completed, according to the Interfax news agency.

"The rebel group is completely destroyed," Chirkin was quoted as saying.

Fighters from a 200-strong rebel group that Russian authorities say crossed into Ingushetia from Georgia on Sept. 26 shot down a helicopter and clashed with Russian troops, killing at least 17 in the first few days of fighting.

Chirkin said a total of 21 soldiers of the 58th army were killed and 25 wounded fighting the group, and that 70 rebels were killed and eight taken prisoner. There was no way to verify the claim, and Russian officials routinely inflate rebel losses in their reports.

In Chechnya, Russian aviation pounded at suspected rebel bases in the mountainous Vedeno region. The military used artillery in the Vedeno, Itum-Kale and Achkoi-Martan districts, an official in Chechnya's Moscow-backed administration said.

Rebels attacked Russian positions 16 times over the previous 24 hours, killing five servicemen and wounding six, the official said on condition of anonymity.

On Tuesday, militants clashed with riot police near the settlements of Shalazhi and Vedeno, killing three policemen, the official said.

In Grozny, Chechnya's capital, one policeman died of wounds after his detachment was fired on and another was killed by a land mine, the official said. A third police officer was killed in the town of Sernovodsk.

Meanwhile, the chief of Chechnya's Security Council, Rudnik Dudayev, said that 1,600 of the region's residents have gone missing since Russian troops returned in 1999, according to Interfax.

Human rights advocates blame most of the disappearances on Russian troops, who have been accused of arbitrarily detaining Chechen men and torturing and killing detainees. Civilians say they are forced to hand over large bribes in exchange for the release of a relative or to receive his body for burial.

Dudayev said that despite the Chechen government's efforts to protect civilians' rights, there were still reports of violations by troops in some villages.

Moscow fought a 1994-96 war with Chechen separatists that ended in de facto independence for the region. Russian troops returned in 1999 after rebels raided a neighboring region and after apartment house bombings that killed more than 300 people were blamed on Chechen militants.

[Destro]

Follow the battle from these earlier posts:

RUSSIA: Chechen Rebels Bushwacked

RUSSIA: Chechen rebel relief force from Georgia marching into a meat grinder

[imperator007]

Good job Russia. We are very happy to see the stincking cadavers.

[OPS4]

So did they get U.N. Clearence for this murder death kill,
or is Judge Dredd on the way. It would be nice if we did the same, and quit the U.N. B.S. and remind Russia of this
when its time to Vote on the Security Council.
Ops4 God Bless America!

[kinghorse]

Darn,

The INS isn't going to like this. Future customers eliminated.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

Good job Russia. We are very happy to see the stincking cadavers.

And good shooting too! Looks like that slimeball laying on his back toog a round in the gut AND one in between the eyes. Tally Ho!

[1L]

OK, for all you eastern european guru's, can you give me a quick nutshell on the problems (i.e. why do they exist) between Russia and the Republics (Chechnya, Georgia, etc.). Is this a case of succession that Russian didn't like? If so, why not. Forgive me if this sounds dumb; I'm not at all checked out in this sort of stuff. When I hear Georgia, I think Bulldogs.

[archy]

...And good shooting, too! ... Tally Ho!

Just so, very reminiscent of the old days when Gen. Troshev was running 58th Army and ordered SVD Dragonov sniper-rifle-equipped marksmen attached to every squad and vehicle crew, rather than just 1 per platoon as had been the previous Russian standard practice. And it worked. He was replaced, in a change-of-command said to not have been for substandard performance. I wonder if maybe he's back... Sounds like he might be!

Yes, he kinda looks like US comedian Buddy Hackett...

[archy]

...can you give me a quick nutshell on the problems...

Well, not exactly. I'll admit the politics and sociology of the region is beyond my understanding. But here's a three-year-old rundown on some of the players, a few of which are now dead or in other postings, but which should give you a good starting place.

And if you'd like a lower-level view of such things, give me a FReepmail....

-archy-/-

*Chechnya: Key Players [circa 2000]

[dead]

"The rebel group is completely destroyed," Chirkin was quoted as saying.

Vlad don’t play games.

[sheik yerbouty]

khoroshov!

[Grampa Dave]

But did the Russians have permission from Tommy Da$$hole and KKKEr Dirty Bryd to kill these innocent Islamakazis?

Did the Russians have proof that these Islamazkazis meant to harm innocent Russians.

Who cares, just kill all of the Chechnya Islamakazis for Russia and the rest of us!

Thank you, Russian Soldiers!

[Destro]

Want to know why the Chechens started this second war? Here is a timeline of the second Chechen war and the reasons behind it.

This time the Chechen gamble failed.

[TheLooseThread]

"Good job Russia. We are very happy to see the stincking cadavers"

I agree.