Moscow - Chechen rebels went on the offensive against Russian forces yesterday, killing two generals and 21 other soldiers in an attack and an assault on Chechnya's second city, Gudermes.
A Chechen rebel force numbering some 300 men mounted the overnight attack on Gudermes and fighting continued throughout the day. A Kremlin spokesman, Mr Sergei Yastrzhembsky, said some 15 Chechens had been killed in the battles.