VLADIKAVAKAZ, Russia - Russian forces in Chechnya used helicopters and heavy artillery to pound rebel positions in the south of the republic Monday, while four soldiers were killed in separate attacks over 24 hours.
The official, speaking under condition of anonymity, said missiles and shells were fired on positions in the districts of Itum-Kale, Vedeno and Nojay-Yurt in the mountainous south of the war-torn republic.
Elsewhere, rebels attacked Russian positions 16 times since early Sunday, killing two Russian soldiers and wounding four, the same source reported.
Additionally, in Urus-Martan near Grozny, a shootout between occupants of a car and Russian soldiers at a check-point left one dead on both sides. One other soldier was wounded as well as two passengers of the car.
A Russian explosive expert was killed Monday morning in the outskirts of Grozny during a mine-clearance operation.
A pro-Moscow Chechen policeman was also killed in the Chechen capital during a clash with presumed rebels Monday, the source said. He added that the body of another policeman was on Sunday found in the trunk of a car whose driver just had died in a car crash.
Russian casualties are rarely reported on state television and the toll from the second Chechen war remains largely unknown.
The Russian government last year reported that 4,500 soldiers were killed, but human rights groups estimate the real toll may be three times higher, since the Russian figure only takes into account soldiers killed on the battlefield, and not those who die from their wounds in hospital.