Rebel spokesman Movladi Udugov, however, told Reuters 40 Russian servicemen had died during the first four hours of fighting and more than 100 were wounded.
CNN: Fighting increases in Chechnya
2.
On Saturday, the Deputy Director of the Congress of Muslims in Dagestan and Chechnya, Movladi Udugov, warned that the situation in the region was becoming increasingly unstable and "may explode at any moment".