INDEPENDENT NEWS

Kavkaz News: Chechen Rebels Counter Attack

Published: Thu 9 Mar 2000 10:05 AM
The following is a transcript from....http://www.chechnya.xnet.is/>http://www.chechnya.xnet.is/... the official news agency of the Chechen rebels.
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Wednesday, March 8th, 2000
Kavkaz Center reports:
Special Operation in Gudermes
The Chechen command makes it known that during the night to March 7th Chechen units carried out a special Operation in Gudermes and attacked the Russian in various parts of the town.
A 'block-post' of the Russian was destroyed. The most fierce shooting took place near the former pedagogical college. There the mujahideen killed about 15 Russians.
The mujahideen left the town at dawn.
The situation around Samashki heightens
As already reported the Chechen mujahideen went into Starye Atagi and Samashki three days ago. The circumstances in Starye Atagi since then did not change basically - at the fringe of the village shooting takes place regularly. The Chechen fighters explain this with the fact that the Russians are deploying their main forces in the direction of Ulus-Kert. But a big armoured column is moving from Ingushetia towards Samashki, artillery is being deployed in the direction of the town. The mujahideen say that they are not going to relax in the town: Yesterday evening they moved towards the enemy and attacked the flanks of the armoured column. The Chechen command reports about 4 destroyed BMPs. After the attack the Chechen unit went into the forests near the town. Russian tanks and artillery shells the fringes of the village.
Fighting in Ulus-Kert
The fighting in Ulus-Kert is not let up since two weeks. The Russians continuously try to assault the village – the Chechen are repulsing them and are counter-attacking.
During the last 5 days the Russians lost up to 500 so-called "spetsnazovtsy", i.e. soldiers of "elite units". Having suffered these heavy casualties the Russians retreated to the northern fringe of Duba-Yurt; Ulus-Kert is shelled with artillery and rocket launchers.
The Chechen command makes it known that the mujahideen last night made a raid to Duba-Yurt and managed to destroy three armoured vehicles and two SAUs [self-propelled guns].
During the last week the mujahideen on this battle-field lost 17 fighters.
Saadi-Khutor and Alkhazurovo remain in control of the mujahideen
All Russian attacks on Saadi-Khutor and Alkhazurovo were repulsed, the mujahideen are in control of these villages. The enemy's efforts to entrench at the fringes of the village were frustrated.
A unit of so-called paratroopers was destroyed while trying to land on one of the tactical heights. The fighting lasted for two hours. Having lost more than half of their men (about 60 soldiers) the Russian retreated under the protection of helicopters.
Near Alkhazurovo the combat actions are less intensive. The Russians shell the villages with artillery and mortars.
Shamil Basayev
Today Shamil Basayev repudiated Russian reports he was going to "flee" from Chechnya as absurd and ridiculous: the Russians had reported that a sporting airplane was going to land on the frozen surface of Lake Kazenoy-Am in order to pick him up and bring him away.
According to him he is not going to leave Chechnya at all, he is recovering well and the wound of his leg is healing up surprisingly fast. A contemporary artificial limb has been manufactured by local craftsmen and will be applied after the final healing of the wound.
Basayev says the senseless bombardment of Lake Kazenoy-Am makes it clear that it is the Russians aim to destroy not only the Chechen people but also the Chechen environment and the singularities of God's creation in Chechnya – this lake is the only place in the world were the 'Ayzen Trout' is living.
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Tuesday, March 7th, 2000
Kavkaz Center reports:
Russian elite unit destroyed near Ulus-Kert
While the Russian generals publish their daily pre-election statements on "thousands of killed Chechen fighters" the Chechen Armed Forces keep on annihilating Russian units systematically, crushing one formation of the enemy after the other.
Today the Chechen command made known the destruction of a large Russian elite unit near Ulus-Kert. Carrying out an unexpected manoeuvre the mujahideen went behind the Russians' rear flank and encircled the unit. The Chechen side speaks of about 350 dead Russian soldiers.
The mujahideen had managed to move to positions between Duba-Yurt and Ulus-Kert, virtually isolating the Russians from their safe rear positions. One Chechen unit attacked the main forces of the enemy, not permitting them to render help to the Russian assault unit. Another Chechen unit attacked this same assault unit consisting of so-called elite soldiers.
In this fighting the mujahideen suffered 8 casualties, and 12 mujahideen were wounded.
Official list of casualties
Today the Chechen command published an official list of the Russian and the Chechen casualties since the beginning of the Russian aggression.
According to this list from September 1999 to March 5th 2000 about 20,000 civilian inhabitants of the Chechen Republic were killed. More than 14,000 citizens died during the assault on Dzhokhar. About 1,500 citizens of the Chechen capital were shot after the Russians entered the town.
The casualties of the Chechen armed forces in the same period run to 650 regular soldiers and 500 militia men, i.e. 1,150 men. About 1,300 fighters have been wounded.
During the four months of the siege of Dzhokhar 370 mujahideen fell, and 120 died during the escape operation at the beginning of February. The total number of fighters defending Dzhokhar ran to 3,500; about 3,000 men escaped from Dzhokhar to the bases in the south of Chechnya.
About 6,000 people are being kept in Russian concentration camps and prisons, among them about 40 mujahideen.
During the same period, since the beginning of the Russian invasion, about 15,000 Russians died. The Russians suffered their heaviest casualties during the 4 months of the siege of Dzhokhar, in which about 9,000 Russians fell. The total number of the Russians assaulting Dzhokhar came to 100,000 men. The Russians in the siege put into action about 5,000 armoured vehicles, artillery systems, and rocket launchers.
All in all, 250,000 Russian soldiers are deployed on the territory of the ChRI.
During this war about 400 Russian armoured vehicles have been destroyed, among them 20 of the latest Russian T-90 tanks. 60 helicopters and 18 aeroplanes have been shot down.
Fighting near Saadi-Khutor and Alkhazurovo continues. Chechens entered a suburb of Dzhokhar
Near Saadi-Khutor and Alkhazurovo fighting continues. The Russians are continuously putting new forces into action. Artillery and combat helicopters are attacking the villages and the tactical heights.
The mujahideen are resisting and counter-attacking the enemy in surprise attacks. In the course of the combat activities during the last 24 hours the Chechens captured two tactical heights and killed about 100 Russians. The mujahideen are reporting a phenomenon of disintegration in various Russian units.
It became known today that the mujahideen unit deployed for several days in Alkhan-Kala has moved to the settlement of Kirov, a suburb of Dzhokhar. Fighting with the aggressors is taking place there.
Situation in Samashky and Starye Atagi unchanged
Since mujahideen units entered Samashky and Starye Atagi, the situation there has not changed. The Russians still are concentrating forces in the direction of Ulus-Kert and are redeploying tanks and troops in the direction of Achkhoy-Martan and Urus-Martan. The villages of Alkhazurovo and Saadi-Khutor are considered to be the main tactical aims of these operations.
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