Nazran – A column of Russian troops came under heavy grenade attack and machine gunfire from the Ingush resisters near Nazran, former capital of Ingushetiya, on Saturday.
Three separate attacks near Nazran, the former capital city of Ingushetiya, left 55 Russian soldiers dead, it was reported online on the website of Ingushetia.org. However, official sources put the number of casualties at two.
The local police said that the resisters had fired with bazookas at two military lorries and three armored military vehicles of the Russian army in the first attack in Sunjen.
"The [Russian] soldiers could not even find the time to escape [from the scene of attack]," said a police officer, and he added that 40 Russian soldiers were killed in the attack. Ingushetia.org later put it at 50. The two other attacks left five soldiers dead.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that two soldiers were killed and five wounded.
"A search of the area is currently taking place," a Russian official was quoted by the Russian Interfax news agency. The Russian source also said that those who carried out the attack on a defence ministry military column were being tracked.
Yuri Turigin, Ingush Prosecutor, said that the attack was orchestrated by 20 fighters from Chechnya and Ingushetiya.
If verified to be true, this will be the worst loss for the Russian military in a series of recent attacks on troops in Ingushetia.
