10:39, 25 May 2004

Skirmish between Russian, Chechen policemen leaves 3 dead

Three police officers were killed and another four wounded in a skirmish in the Achkhoy-Martan district of Chechnya on May 23. "Yesterday, at out 21:00 local time, SOM (combined police unit) officers of the Kemerovo interior department who were on duty on a post in the Achkhoy-Martan district made an attempt to stop a petrol tanker. Fire from automatic weapons was opened on them from a Niva car that accompanied the vehicle. Senior Sergeant Andrey Milovanov died at the scene as a result of it, another three SOM officers were wounded," a source at the republican commandant's office said on May 24.

SOM officers opened return fire. They destroyed two men and badly wounded one man who were in the Niva car. Later, it was established that these men were Chechen police officers. They all were residents of the Assinovskaya village, Chechnya's Sunzha district. The incident is under investigation.

Author: Sultan Abubakarov, CK correspondent

Source: Caucasian Knot