MAKHACHKALA, August 11 (RIA Novosti) - One person has been killed in an explosion in Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's North Caucasus republic of Dagestan, a police spokesman has said.
"The incident occurred at about 11:00 p.m. [19:00 GMT)] on Monday," he said. "A bomb exploded as a police car was passing by. No police officers were injured, but a man driving a car in the oncoming lane received shrapnel wounds".
The injured 18-year-old VAZ-21010 driver died later in hospital of a serious head wound, police said.
Explosives experts working at the scene of the incident reported that "explosive power of the bomb was equivalent to 1.5 kg (3.31 lbs) of TNT".
Police and patrol cars are frequently targeted by militants in Dagestan. Also on Monday, an explosion caused by a road-side bomb killed one border guard and wounded another in Derbent, the third largest population center in Dagestan.
Dagestan and other regions in Russia's volatile North Caucasus have seen a rise in violence in recent months.
