Russia says kills six suspected militants in North Caucasus

[August 03, 2015]  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian law enforcers killed six people suspected of involvement in "international terrorism" in the city of Nalchik, the capital of Russia's North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria, the national Anti-Terrorist Committee (NAK) said on Monday.

"The militants refused to put down their arms and opened fire on law enforcement officials. Six bandits were neutralized in the ensuing shootout," NAK said in a statement. It added it believed those killed were involved in a number of terrorist crimes including the killing of a police officer last week. But it gave no further details on what kind of group those it killed came from. It also said the process of identifying those killed was still continuing. Russia is struggling to quell a simmering Islamic insurgency in the North Caucasus, where some rebels have sworn allegiance to Islamic State. Rights activists and Kremlin critics accuse Russian security services of heavy-handed tactics in the North Caucasus, saying they target not only militants but any dissenters and drive bitter resentment among locals. (Writing by Gabriela Baczynska, Editing by Jason Bush and Hugh Lawson) [© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.