Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is leading a special operation against militants in the republic's remote mountainous districts, the North Caucasus republic said on Friday.
"The operation by troops, special police units and regional police officers is underway in all mountainous regions - from Nozhay-Yurt [in the east] to Achkhoy-Martan," the government said in a statement posted on its website.
According to the statement, the head of the Republic of Chechnya is currently near Benoi-Vedeno, to the south of the capital Grozny, where a serviceman has been killed in a clash with militants.
The operation will continue for a "significant period", the statement said.
Kadyrov, a former separatist fighter who changed sides after the first Chechen War, often leads operations against militants in the republic.
PYATIGORSK, September 24 (RIA Novosti)
