Doku Umarov believed to be hiding in the highland south of the republic. "The operation was carefully prepared and began a week and a half ago," Alkhanov told Itar-Tass by telephone from Algeria, which he is visiting as a member of the Russian delegation. "Pinpointed events are being carried out in several directions. This special round-the-clock operation involves the republic's law-enforcement agencies and specialized units of federal forces," the president said.He did not comment on the results, but made it clear that it has yielded results. "When such serious work is on, there are always certain results, but we'll tell them later," he added.