One dead in Russian forces operation in Ingushetia

MOSCOW, Sep 2 (Reuters) One man was shot dead as a result of security operations today in the troubled Russian region of Ingushetia, which borders Chechnya, but the local interior ministry denied reports a gun battle with militants occurred.

''There was an operation and one man was killed,'' said a spokesman for the local interior ministry in the town of Karabulak in the mostly Muslim region in the North Caucasus.

A local witness said he heard the sound of gunfire and saw about 40 troops from the local interior ministry forces on the streets in the town centre.

The incident comes two days after three members of an ethnic Russian family were killed by insurgents in the same region.

Four police were also killed in a car bomb blast in the region's capital of Nazran on Friday, described by the authorities as a ''terrorist'' act.

The escalation in violence comes just weeks after 2,500 troops were sent to the region to support local security forces.

REUTERS RS KP2217