Tuesday, October 18 2005 14:15 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Nalchik: Shooting broke out today (Oct 18, 2005) in three districts of the southern Russian city of Nalchik, as police and security forces said they were launching special operations to detain suspected militants.

Alleged Islamic extremists conducted a coordinated series of attacks on police and other government buildings in the city last Thursday, and some 137 people were killed in the fighting.

Local television urged city residents not to leave their homes if possible, and the local schools administration advised parents to take their children home from schools and nursery schools.

Shooting was heard in the suburb of Dubki, where the city's main morgue is located and where security forces were conducting a sweep for suspected rebels. Gunfire also broke out on the southwestern edge of town and in the city center, near police precinct No. 3.

Sources reported that police killed a man early today when he allegedly put up resistance during a document check. Two other men who resisted managed to escape, Interfax said.