Kavkaz News: Mountain War Continues

Kavkaz News: Chechens And Russians Clash In Mountains

Transcript from… http:///www.chechnya.xnet.is/ … the official news service of the Chechen rebels.

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Kavkaz-Tsentr reports:

The fighting in Itum-Kale continues. The mujahideen attacked the Russians who entered the village a few days ago. Up to 30 Russians were killed, and one BMP was knocked out. There were no casualties on the Chechen side. According to the commander of the Chechen units in Itum-Kale the Russians are trying to expand the zone controlled by them in that combat area and are transporting more troops and munitions into it.

During the last 24 hours bitter clashes took place on the south-western outskirts of Elistanzhi. The Russians, screened by a column of refugees, moved towards the former holiday camp, which had already been destroyed completely in the first war. The refugees hurried onward under heavy fire.
In the course of these operations the Chechens succeeded in destroying one tank and two BMPs. 120 Russian soldiers were killed.
The Chechen units retreated to the wooded areas of the promontory. The defensive line along the Arzh-Akhk River remained under their control.
The Russian air force continued the massive bombardment of Khattuni, Tevzani, Makhkety, Selmentauzen, and other villages. 39 civilians have been killed.

The aggressors have not stopped their efforts to break through the Chechen lines at the entrance to the Argun Gorge. The Chechen positions are attacked incessantly with artillery and rockets. The Russian air force is bombing Zonakh, Varandy, Duba-Yurt, Chishki, and other villages.
Fierce combat actions are taking place near Duba-Yurt and for the commanding heights around the entrance to the Argun Gorge. The Russians are trying to assault the Chechen positions and are making use of helicopters to this end. During the last 24 hours they twice tried to break through, but the Chechens counter-attacked. The Mujahideen managed to kill about 80 Russians, and 3 soldiers were taken prisoner.

The Chechen command has made it known that the Russian command has established communication with the Chechen command this morning and has suggested exchanging Babitsky for three Russian officers taken prisoner by the Chechen forces at the beginning iof January. These officers are: Lieutenant Colonel Aleksandr Petrovich Zhukov (chief of the North Caucasian Airforce Administration), Captain Anatoly Mogutnov, and Lieutenant Dmitriy Beglyankov.
Kavkaz-Tsentr has no further details at this time.

The mass murder of civilians in the occupied territories of south-western Chechnya and in Dzhokhar goes on. According to eye-witnesses 49 civilians were shot in Gekhi-Chu, among them 27 women and 13 children. 30 people were arrested and taken to unknown places.
More then 400 inhabitants of Kotar-Yurt were killed. Half of the village is destroyed.
In Shaami-Yurt 40 civilians were shot, 35 people were arrested and taken to unknown places. Due to the bombing of the village about 150 people died.
In Rozhni-Chu 17 people were shot, 30 were arrested and taken to unknown places.
In Zakan-Yurt more than 100 people died as a result of Russian air-raids. 32 people were shot. 30 people were arrested and taken to unknown places.
In the Chechen capital during the last 4 days 350 people were shot, among them about 270 women, children, and elderly. According to eye-witnesses, truck columns with looted booty are leaving the town in the direction of Stavropol and Ossetia.

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February 14th, 2000

Kavkaz-Tsentr reports:

The fighting near Itum-Kale and Duba-Yurt continues. The Russians are trying to occupy the strategical heights there and to expose the mountain roads to fire. The Mujahideen are trying to hinder them from achieving this goal. Near Itum-Kale face-to-face fighting took place between advanced units of the Russians and units of the Mujahideen who are guarding one of the roads to Shatoy. Efforts of the Russians to move in this direction failed. Having lost about 30 men, the Russians retreated to their former positions.
Near Duba-Yurt the Mujahideen remain in control of the tactical heights and of the settlement itself. During the last 24 hours the Russians once again tried to break through the Chechen defensive positions. Their movement has halted by Chechen fire. Three Russian tanks have been knocked out.

According to the Defence staff of the ChRI the Chechen forces have left Elistanzhi. The front-line now is situated along teh River Arzh-Akhk.
The Russian airforce has attacked the mountain villages of Khattuni, Toyzeni, Makhkety, Zonakh, Varandy, Cheshki, Shatoy, Borzoy, Bitchig, and others. During the last three days more than 200 civilians have died in Russian bombing raids.

Ilyas Talkhadov, the commander of the presidential guard of the ChRI, fell on February 10th near Duba-Yurt. Talkhadov took an active part in the defense of Dzhokhar. During the withdrawal from the town his unit suffered minimal casualties.
Talkhadov was the former security chief of President Maskhadov and was appointed commander of the presidential guard by Maskhadov in 1997. From 1992-1995 he had served in the presidential guard of Dzhokhar Dudayev.
In the past months five well-known Chechen commanders have died: Ilyas Talkhadov, Lechi Dudayev (mayor of Dzhokhar), Isa Astamirov (vice prime-minister of the leadership of the ChRI), Aslambek Ismailov (military commander of Dzhokhar), and Khunkar-Pasha Israpilov (leader of the anti-terrorist centre of the ChRI).

According to the Chechen command the Mujahideen are regrouping their forces. Due to this, Chechen units have been withdrawn from several villages and stationed in new positions. The Chechen vice-president Vakha Arsanov confirmed this in an interview with Chechen TV and emphasized that this was related to the changes in the military situation in various parts of the war theatre.

Movladi Udugov (Deputy of the Amir of the Congress of the Muslims of Ichkeriya and Dagestan) once again designated the Putin regime's fundamental ideology as "Russism". This term was coined by Chechnya's first president Dzhokhar Dudayev, who repeatedly emphasized that Russism was a threat to the whole world. Russism signifies a satanic, merciless onslaught on the weak, and slavish cringing before the mighty.
In Mr. Udugov's opinion this mentality is deeply rooted in the Russian people's mind, a people that has usually been governed by criminals. In the course of history it has been masked with different ideological labels: tsarism, communism, democracy, or orthodoxy. But in reality these terms have been merely a camouflage for the same satanic phenomenon that remains one of the most dangerous threats to the whole world--and also to the west, which keeps this Russism alive with enormous financial aid.
Mr. Udugov says that the Chechen people are resisting this danger to the benefit of all mankind. If the international community does not recognize this danger today it may be too late tomorrow.

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