KHANKALA, February 10 (AVN) - Marines of the Northern Fleet and the Caspian Flotilla have entered the 8km-long Vedeno gorge in southern Chechnya and started moving down its bottom and sideslopes, a source in the unified federal headquarters said on Thursday.
Thanks to thorough engineering reconnaissance, federal sappers found and rendered harmless several dozens of anti-tank mines and landmines placed at routes of the federal offence, the source told the Military News Agency.
Despite long-term fortifications, rebels are not putting up organised resistance, as their groups and bases have been subject to intensive artillery and aviation fire in the past few days, the source went on. In order to scale up the effectiveness of strikes against fortified targets, the federals used more powerful weapons, including KAB-1500 vacuum-explosion bombs, he said.
By Wednesday evening, the marines reached southern and western outskirts of the Serzhen-Yurt village and are currently blocking it. They have suffered no losses.