The Associated Press
Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2001; 11:25 p.m. EDT

VLADIKAVKAZ, Russia –– Chechen rebels fired on Russian outposts and vehicles in breakaway Chechnya, killing at least three and wounding many other federal servicemen in a day of attacks, officials said Wednesday.

At least two Russian soldiers were killed and two wounded in 11 shellings of federal positions throughout Chechnya since Tuesday, said an official with the Moscow-appointed civilian administration for Chechnya, who asked not to be named.

In addition, a serviceman was killed and four were wounded in the pre-dawn hours Wednesday when insurgents prompted a firefight with federal troops in the village of Starye Atagi.

Rebels have regularly carried out such night raids on Russian positions, steadily bleeding the federal forces and shaking their morale. During the daytime, they target federal forces with radio-controlled land mines.

Federal aircraft and artillery on Wednesday continued to strafe Chechnya's southern mountains in an attempt to hit rebel hideouts, though the massive daily barrage has proven of little worth so far. Russian soldiers also searched for suspected rebels in Grozny and several other towns and villages throughout Chechnya.

Russian troops returned in September 1999 after rebels Chechnya-based rebels led an assault into a neighboring Russian region, a wave of hostage-takings and after apartment building bombings, which authorities blamed on the insurgents, killed more than 300 people in Russia.