Suicide bomber kills 2 policemen in Chechnya

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A suicide bomber killed two police officers in the provincial capital of Chechnya on Friday, officials said. The attacker detonated explosives outside the Russian Interior Ministry's regional headquarters in Grozny, said Pavel Zemskov, a spokesman for the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry's branch in southern Russia. The policemen at a checkpoint near the building were killed, Zemskov said. Last month, the Kremlin formally ended a federal counterterrorism operation in Chechnya, which has experienced two bloody separatist wars in the past 15 years. But insurgents continue to stage frequent attacks on troops and authorities in the region despite increased stability under Kremlin-backed regional President Ramzan Kadyrov. Kadyrov praised the policemen who died, saying their courage helped prevent higher casualties. He told reporters in Grozny the attack wouldn't disrupt efforts to stabilize the region. "The incident had no impact on the situation in Grozny," Kadyrov said. "The situation in the capital and on the entire territory of the republic is absolutely calm."