Four policemen killed, 10 wounded in Chechnya

MOSCOW, Oct 8 (Reuters) Four Russian policemen were killed and 10 wounded when a convoy of vehicles carrying interior ministry servicemen was ambushed in the troubled Chechnya region on Sunday, Russian news agencies reported today.

The column of cars came under fire from unknown gunmen in the mountainous Vedeno district in southern Chechnya yesterday morning, said media reports, quoting Chechen police sources.

The policemen were among reinforcements sent to the area after clashes with rebels on Saturday in which one separatist gumman was killed.

Federal troops have fought two bloody wars against separatists in the tiny Caucasus republic since 1994, but the Kremlin says life there is now returning to normal. However, pro-independence rebels still strike at troops and police from their mountainous hideouts.

Reuters ARB GC1052