Defence Ministry helicopter attacked in Chechnya

Militants in Chechnya's Vedeno district attacked a Mi-8 helicopter belonging to the Russian Defence Ministry with small arms, the headquarters of the United Federal Troops stationed in the North Caucasus reported on Wednesday.

"The incident took place around 5:00 p.m. Moscow time, on the outskirts of the village of Eshilkhotoi, Vedeno district," said a source in the headquarters. "The pilots managed to steer the machine out of the fire zone. No one was hurt." In a separate development that took place at 7:00 Moscow time near the village of Neftyanka, Vedeno district, an army special task force encountered a small group of militants. "There was a clash, during which one militant was killed and the rest escaped into a forest tract," said the source.

As of this moment, the federal forces keep searching for militants in the neighbourhood of Neftyanka.