The militants killed in a sweep operation in the village of Tekui-Mektep on Friday had been plotting a Beslan-style school siege, Viktor Barnash, head of the Stavropol territory department for the fight against organized crime, was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying. “Five shooting points were destroyed and 11 militants were killed. Units are continuing to comb the village. The armed group was plotting a Beslan-style terrorist attack,” he said.
Russian special forces on Friday stormed two houses in southern Russia where alleged militants were holed up, after three police officers were killed in a clash. Police, acting on a tip, hunted down the group in Tukui-Mekteb, a village in the southern Stavropol region, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the border with Chechnya. The militants refused to surrender.
The militants were heavily armed with automatic weapons, grenade-launchers and ammunition. The operation to eliminate them required armored vehicles and helicopters. No civilians were killed or injured during the operation |