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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| 3 policemen shot dead in Russia's restive Dagestan |
| 2013-05-02 |
| [Pak Daily Times] Three coppers were killed and two more injured when gunnies opened fire on their cars in Russia's restive region of Dagestan ...a formerly inoffensive Caucasus republiccurrently bedevilled by low-level Islamic insurgency, occasional outbreaks of separatism, ethnic tensions and terrorism, primarily due to its proximity to Chechnya. There are several dozen ethnic groups, most of which speak either Caucasian, Turkic, or Iranian languages. Largest among these ethnic groups are the Avar, Dargin, Kumyk, Lezgin, and Laks. While Russers form less than five percent of the population, Russian remains the primary official language and the lingua franca... , Sherlocks said Wednesday. A police major and two other officers were killed on Tuesday evening while driving through Buinaksk, a city about 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the capital of Dagestan, Makhachkala, in Russia's North Caucasus. "Unidentified persons ... opened automatic gunfire" at the two cars the coppers were travelling in, said a statement on the Investigative Committee website. "Two more coppers were taken to the hospital with various wounds," the statement said. Dagestan, the most populous and ethnically diverse region of the mountainous North Caucasus in southern Russia has become the most unstable in recent years, with rebels staging attacks against the pro-Kremlin local authorities on a nearly daily basis. |
| Posted by:Fred |