Grozny, 22 November 1999 (RFE/RL) - Russian military officials in
Chechnya say more than 5,000 separatist fighters have taken defensive
positions in Grozny as Russian troops continue to tighten an encirclement of the capital. The Russia army headquarters in Chechnya says its troops continued to advance in the districts of Achkhoit-Martan and Urus-Martan yesterday in a bid to cut off the only remaining retreat route out of Grozny -- a single highway leading to Chechnya's southern mountains.