Law enforcers in Russia's North Caucasus republic of Dagestan are attacking a house where militants are holed up, a police spokesman said on Thursday.
"The militants have been trapped in a private house since Wednesday evening and in response to a request to surrender they opened fire. We have begun an attack on the house," the spokesman said, adding that, according to preliminary information, there are two militants in the house.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday ordered the Federal Security Service to tighten security in the North Caucasus following a suicide bomb attack in Dagestan that killed five and wounded up to 19 people.
The suicide bomber drove a car into a traffic police depot in Dagestan's capital, Makhachkala, early on Wednesday but was blocked by a police vehicle before exploding.
Russia's mainly Muslim North Caucasus republics, especially Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia, have seen an upsurge of militant violence lately, with frequent attacks on police and officials.
MAKHACHKALA, January 7 (RIA Novosti)
