DAGESTAN: RUSSIA/ISLAMIC REBELS CONFLICT LATEST

Russian/Nat Bad weather has offered Islamic rebels fighting Russian troops in Dagestan a reprieve. Heavy rain and fog has grounded all Russian airplanes and gunship helicopters in the area, providing a short break in the intense fighting of recent days. Russian planes, helicopters and artillery have been striking Islamic rebel positions in the mountains of Dagestan for the past 11 days. Russia’s deputy interior minister Vladimir Kolesnikov claims that the last pockets of resistance are all but