7 police officers killed in Chechnya ambush

Chechnya, a largely Muslim region in southern Russia, has been plagued by separatist conflict for more than a decade.

Seven police officers were killed when rebels ambushed a police convoy in Chechnya, officials said on Wednesday.

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Rebels fired on police cars near the village of Dai in the Shatoi region in Chechnya's forested southern mountains on Tuesday, killing the seven officers and wounding one more, said Roman Shchekotin, a spokesman for the Russian Interior Ministry's branch in southern Russia.

The attackers fled and authorities have failed to track them down.

Chechnya, a largely Muslim region in southern Russia, has been plagued by separatist conflict for more than a decade.

Large-scale battles ended years ago, but rebels continue to target federal forces and their local collaborators in regular raids, ambushes and mine explosions.