Russia Keeps Up Its Assault on Chechen Rebels
MAKHACHKALA, Russia — Russian troops dug into trenches near the border with Chechnya on Monday, while Russian jets bombed suspected guerrilla encampments inside the breakaway republic.
The armed forces were carrying out the government’s two-pronged strategy to prevent further incursions by Islamic militants from Chechnya into southern Russia: creating a cordon outside the republic and striking rebel formations and equipment inside.
Russia claimed to have wiped out four rebel bases in about 100 sorties over the weekend. No casualty figures were immediately available from the latest strikes.
Russian officials warned again Monday that Chechen forces were preparing to invade the neighboring Caucasus republic of Dagestan, the site of two incursions from Chechnya since early August. Hundreds of militants seeking to carve out a separate Islamic state in Dagestan were said to be just across the border in Chechnya.
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