November 27, 1999
Web posted at: 10:16 p.m. EST (0316 GMT)

In this story: Victory 'with the help of Allah' Mayor: Grozny death toll could top 500 Rebels taunt Russians IMF loan to Russia at risk RELATED STORIES, SITES

From staff and wire reports

GROZNY, Russia (CNN) -- In the first major counterattack since Moscow launched its offensive in Chechnya, militants claim they have retaken most of Novogroznensky after storming the small eastern town.

Meanwhile, a ferocious Russian attack on the capital of the breakaway republic has killed at least 260 and reduced much of Grozny to rubble, authorities said.

After Chechen guerrillas shelled and stormed Novogroznensky, 25 miles (40 km) east of Grozny, there was heavy street fighting throughout Saturday. Russian planes dropped bombs on rebel positions, and the western section of Novogroznensky was in flames.

Victory 'with the help of Allah'

By midday, all but the eastern outskirts of Novogroznensky were under control of Chechen fighters, rebel field commander Salman Raduyev said. The counterattack began overnight, when Islamic militants showered Grad rockets on Novogroznensky.

"With the help of Allah, who is leading us to victory, we have taken this town," Raduyev told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

Raduyev said his fighters had taken 18 Russian soldiers prisoner. The number of casualties was unknown, and Russian military officials could not be reached for comment.

Another leading Chechen commander, Shamil Basayev, told Grozny television that the war was about to shift into terrain where the Russians will be more vulnerable, saying that the time for ground battles "has already come."

Since the start of the Chechen campaign, Russian forces have relied heavily on air and artillery strikes, trying to avoid the ground and street battles that exacted heavy losses among their troops during the 1994-96 Chechen war.

Mayor: Grozny death toll could top 500

Much of Grozny was reduced to rubble as Russian artillery and rocket launchers methodically pounded the city for the third consecutive day on Saturday.

Survivors reported at least 260 were dead -- but Grozny's mayor Lecha Dudayev predicted to Interfax news agency that over 500 will be confirmed dead once an accurate count is made.

In a southern neighborhood, four bombs were dropped near a mosque, around which Muslim faithful had gathered during the raid. Eyewitnesses said seven people were killed by blasts, which also shattered the mosque's windows.

Residents who had been hiding in unheated basements ventured out to collect water from puddles. No food was being brought into Grozny, Interfax reported.

Russian forces continued their air and ground assault against Chechen rebels

Rebels taunt Russians

It was the most aggressive assault since the Chechen campaign began. The Russian military reported that barely any living quarters remained intact.

Thousands of rebels remain in Grozny, some hiding in cellars, praying for victory and urging Russian troops to enter the capital.

"We're sitting here waiting for them with our knives, but we haven't seen a Russian solider yet," said one Chechen fighter. "The only good Russian is a dead one."

The Russian Defense Ministry said artillery and warplanes had attacked 35 Chechen towns and villages.

Russia's NTV television station, citing unidentified sources, reported that Russian forces also have taken over the western city of Bamut, a primary rebel stronghold.

More fighting Saturday concentrated around Urus Martan, a town south of Grozny that sits astride a major highway. That road is one of the few left out of Grozny that is not under Russian control.

Russia launched its air assault on Chechen rebels in August and began a ground assault on the republic in September. Moscow's stated aim was to wipe out Islamic rebels who twice invaded the neighboring Russian republic of Dagestan this summer.

But Chechen and some international officials maintain that most of the casualties have been civilians. Chechnya effectively broke away from Russian control after the devastating war ended in a humiliating defeat for Russia.

IMF loan to Russia at risk

In other developments:

• People fleeing Grozny formed a six-mile (10-km) line of cars at a border checkpoint with neighboring Ingushetia. About 1,950 people have sought refuge there since Friday, Ingush Interior Minister Khamzat Gutseriyev said.

• Russian commander Gen. Vladimir Shamanov said Moscow could begin to withdraw its forces from the region by the end of the year.

• The head of the International Monetary Fund warned in Madrid that negative world reaction to the conflict could jeopardize a $640 million loan installment for Russia.

• Russian military authorities arrested five soldiers suspected of opening fire on a stall in a region bordering Chechnya, killing a young woman and injuring two people. The men were believed to have been drunk.

Correspondent Matthew Chance, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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