North Caucasus: Police Block Area For Runaway Kids' Clinic Terrorist

The police have blocked off an area where a dangerous terrorist is presumed to be hiding, the Federal Security Service board for North Ossetia reports over the telephone. The North Osset Interior Ministry supervises the search. Armed with several handgrenades, the man seized singlehanded a children's outpatient clinic in Vladikavkaz, North Osset capital, today. He eventually released his hostages and left the premises in a white police Volga car, says security officer named Nikiforov. Several policemen accompanied the terrorist to check his allegations of several city buildings mined. Vladimir Rubayev, North Ossetia's Deputy Interior Minister, was rumoured to be in the car with the bandit after two hours' talks in which he persuaded the man to spare his captives. The terrorist threatened to blow up the mined houses if the policemen did not leave the car, and drove off alone--no one knows where. The unidentified man is of Caucasian appearance. He was likely to be under drugs when he took the clinic. The criminal is rumoured to have received two million roubles from the police as they were leaving the car.