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Believed to Target Chechen Leaders Pentagon Analysts Cite April Attack;

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Believed to Target Chechen Leaders Pentagon Analysts Cite April Attack; Russian hit squad believed to target Chechen leaders Pentagon analysts cite April attack; BySusan Katz Keating SPECIALTOTHEWASHIMGTONTIMES ' Pentagon analysts believe Rus sia's Federal Counterintelligence Service has deployed a new covert squad assigned to assassinate leaders of the ethnic Chechen re bellion. The sources say they believe the •secret assassination unit scored its first success a month ago with an attack on Sultan Geliskhanov, head of the Chechen state security apparatus. Mr. Geliskhanov is said to have been seriously wounded and perhaps killed in an attack in the Degstani region of Kha- savyurt. Other targets on the unit's "pri ority hit hst" reportedly include Chechen President Dzhokhar Dudayev and Vice President Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev. President Dzhokhar Dudayev is A Pentagon source, speaking on on the "priority hit list." the condition of anonymity, said the assassination unit was formed about two months ago after intelli Russia finds it hard to jettison gence officials determined the these extraconstitutional meth war in Chechnya could drag on for ods. They have a long history of as long as five years. special operations. It comes as no The source said Russian offi surprise this is being employed in cials moved quickly to activate the Chechnya," unit of 40 to 50 trained comman "I'm surprised the Russians dos, some of whom previously haven't done it sooner," said John served as Soviet Spetsnaz troops Lenczowski, director of the Insti oras KGB or GRU (military intel tute of World Politics in Wash ligence) operatives. Many mem ington. "Their efforts against the bers of the assassination squad Chechens have been brutal are believed to have served in enough, one would have suspected Afghanistan. they would have gone in to decapi Thie new unit, armed with tate these people already." Dragunov sniper rifles and si A counselor from the Russian lenced Makarov pistols, trained at Embassy was unavailable for com a base outside metropolitan Mos ment, a press office spokeswoman cow before being dispatched to said. Chechnya, a source said. Russia's five-month military A second miUtary intelligence campaign to end Chechnya's bid sourceat the Pentagonagreed that for independence has been far reports on the squad were "abso more difficult than Boris Yeltsin's lutely" reliable and said the infor government anticipated. Russian mation was obtained through "hu forces have sustained an esti man sources." mated 1,500 casualties and have "The Russians were able to im killed a reported 35,000 Chechens. plement it [the squad] so quickly Yet the Chechen guerrillas still re because they already had the sist with ferocity. trained operatives in place, The The fighting has continued de Russians, under the old mantle of spite a cease-fire declared by Rus the Soviet Union, have a history of sia for this week's World War II this Spetsnaz-type operation." victory summit. The Russians have been repeat CIA officials contacted by The edly surprised by the Chechens' Washington Times said they had ability to repel assaults and lure no knowledge of an assassination troops into ambushes, the Penta squad working in Chechnya, but gon source said. In one incident, the first Pentagon source said its about 30 Russian soldiers were deployment was being carefully killed after being drawn inside a studied by U.S. intelligence ana mined building. lysts, "The Russians decided they would respond with the same pre "The CIA is extremely inter cision that the Israelis have used ested. It has its ears to the wall on against the Arabs," the, source every nugget of information re said, citing the creation of the as garding this," he said. sassination squad. "The idea was Representatives of the State De to cut off the head and the rest of partment seemed startled when questioned about the unit this the snake would die." But some U.S. analysts said the week. tactic will not work because it is "We haven't heard anything based on Russia's fundamental about it as of this moment," said misunderstanding of the Chechen spokeswoman Sharon Bowman. character. Others reacted differently "The ChecJiens have been fight "Many experts were skeptical ing the Russians for years," said theSpetsnaz-type units would stay Paul Globe of the Jamestown permanently disbanded after the Foundation, former chief of State collapse of the Soviet Union," said Department analysts on Soviet na Loren Thompson, a defense ana tionalities. "They even revolted lyst with the Alexis de Tbcqueville against Stalin. They will fight to Institute. "The political culture in the last man.".' '.
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