GROZNY. Aug 27 (Interfax-AVN) - Acting Chechen Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov said on Thursday that he had ordered opening fire on "anyone who appears in Grozny or in any other populated area wearing a mask."
Chechnya is due to hold presidential elections on Sunday.
"Law enforcement agency staff have no reason to hide their faces if they are acting in accordance with the law," Alkhanov told Interfax.
"The orders have been given, and I will demand their strict fulfillment regardless of who is noticed wearing a mask," he said.
"Most crimes are committed by people who hide their faces behind masks, and the population can't understand who they are dealing with, law enforcement agency officers or bandits," he said.
He also said attempts by rebels to destabilize the situation were doomed to failure. "We have taken exhaustive measures to ensure a quiet atmosphere during the election period," he said.
He said 430 polling stations were being guarded.
"Officers from the Federal Security Service, Interior Ministry forces, and military commandants' offices are interacting with us. The streets in Grozny are being patrolled round the clock," Alkhanov said.
He also said people who, as he claimed, had been tricked into rebel groups and "haven't yet stained themselves with blood, may come back."
"We give them such a chance. And if they don't take it, they will sooner or later be eliminated or go on trial," he said.
Alkhanov said rebels should clearly understand that there would be no repeat of the events that occurred in August 1996, when Russian forces left Grozny.