Vladikavkaz, June 28: Attackers bombed a school under construction in Chechnya today, killing two Chechen police at the building, while eight Russian soldiers died elsewhere in skirmishes with rebels or mine explosions, an official said. Meanwhile, women blocked a highway in the village of Gikalo demanding that 10 local residents detained in sweep operations be freed, an official in the Kremlin-backed Chechen administration said on condition of anonymity. About 150 demonstrators prevented four cars from passing with bodyguards of Akhmad Kadyrov, head of Chechnya's Moscow-backed administration, according to an eyewitness. The guards fired warning shots and some women then assaulted the guards. After a brief scuffle the women left and the blockade was lifted. More than 190 suspects were detained in the past 24 hours in sweep operations, the official said, in which Russian troops search for rebel sympathizers among the civilian population. The explosion at the school in Dyshne-Vedeno did substantial damage to the four-story building, trapping the police underneath, the Itar-Tass news agency reported. rescuers were working to extract the bodies.

Bureau Report