Russian special forces have killed at least nine suspected militants in the restive North Caucasus region, dpa cited the Interfax news agency as reporting Tuesday. One soldier was wounded in clashes with the militants, who hid in a house in the Dagestan city of Buinaksk, the report said. Russian forces and Islamist insurgents seeking to establish an independent emirate have fought for control of the Caucasus region for more than two decades. Bombings, ambushes and house raids are an almost daily occurrence. The southern Russian region stretches from Sochi in the west to Chechnya and Dagestan in the east.
