12:01, 7 April 2014

After IFV explosion in Chechnya, power agents shelled Yandi vicinities, locals report

Special operation in Chechnya. 2013. Photo from NAC archive, nac.gov.ru

The woodland near the village of Yandi, Achkhoy-Martan District of Chechnya, was shelled after on April 3 an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) was blown up in the area, according to local residents. Chechen militants have claimed responsibility for the blast, but investigators believe that the mine that exploded under the vehicle could be planted long ago.

The explosion of the IFV on April 3 killed four servicemen and wounded seven. They were militaries from the engineering internal troops, who conducted reconnaissance near the village of Yandi.

After the explosion, militaries shelled the forests near Yandi from long-range guns; and combat helicopters flew near the scene, residents of the Achkhoy-Martan District told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Members of the armed underground in Chechnya assert that the IFV undermining was "a successful subversive operation." One of the websites that support North-Caucasian militants reports that two powerful bombs blew up under the IFV.

Investigators consider several versions of the explosion and do not rule out that the IFV could run into a fougasse or a mine planted long ago, said a source from the Republic's Military Commandant.

Author: Muslim Ibragimov, Aleksandr Ivanov

Source: CK correspondents