Over 50 militants killed in N. Caucasus in 2013 - antiterrorist committee
PYATIGORSK. Feb 26 (Interfax) - More than 50 militants, among them 14 gang leaders, have been killed in security operations in the North Caucasus since the beginning of the year, Russian National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC) Director Alexander Bortnikov said.
"The eliminated militants include those who masterminded terrorist attacks on a market in Vladikavkaz and a police checkpoint in Khasavyurt, as well as the criminals involved in the assassination of the Agricultural Academy rector, the Chegem district administration chief and Kabardino-Balkaria's TV presenter," Bortnikov said at a NAC session in Pyatigorsk on Tuesday.
The killers of several mosque imams, two village administration heads, a Dagestan Supreme Court employee and a Russian Investigative Committee officer were eliminated as well, he said.
Sixty-six gang members have been detained.
"Prevention campaigns have also been conducted among young people and those who found themselves under the influence of terrorism and extremism ideologies for different reasons. As a result of these measures, more than 60 gang members and their accomplices who did not commit serious crimes agreed to turn themselves in to police," he said.
Antiterrorism commissions operating in the North Caucasus republics have stepped up awareness raising campaigns among the local population, Bortnikov said.
