KHANKALA. May 27 (Interfax-AVN) - Twenty rebels were destroyed in different parts of Chechnya last week attempting to plant explosive devices.
The headquarters of the federal force in the North Caucasus told Interfax-Military News Agency on Monday that 17 rebels were killed in exchanges of fire and three died assembling or planting land mines.
A total of 45 explosive devices were destroyed in Chechnya last week, a spokesman for the headquarters said. Eight of them were planted on roads that are frequently used by federal armored vehicles and automobiles.
Landmine blasts killed four servicemen and injured 12 more, the spokesman said. He explained intensification of the mine warfare by the arrival of about one tonne of explosives from Georgia's Pankisi gorge. According to radio interception data, guerrillas got the explosives in early May. Federals have already seized a part of that batch amounting to 150kg from extremist caches. In addition, the caches contained about 500 artillery shells of various caliber that rebels had planned to use as landmines.