MOSCOW, February 26 (RIA Novosti) - About 40 militants are blocked in the mountains of Chechnya's Nozhai-Yurt district, Chechen President Alu Alkhanov told RIA Novosti.
A special operation to block and eliminate the gang commanded by Shamil Basayev is underway in the mountains, he said.
"About a dozen militants were eliminated. Unfortunately, the forces of the Chechen Interior Ministry and the Akhmad Kadyrov regiment also suffer losses," Mr. Alkhanov said.
According to him, it was impossible to involve the air forces in the operation for bad weather conditions.
"The operation was launched by the republican law enforcement bodies. The federal forces joined later on," Alu Alkhanov noted.
In his words, the operation continues.
