Russian security forces shot dead two suspected "terrorists" during a security operation in the city of Nizhny Novgorod, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing law enforcement sources.
An explosion during the operation injured two officers from the special police and a third suspect was detained alive, reports said.
"Law enforcement officers stopped a car, two suspects resisted arrest and were liquidated on the spot. Explosives were found in the car," TASS state news agency quoted a source as saying.
A law enforcement source told RIA Novosti that those killed were "suspected of terrorism."
The special operation reportedly took place in a residential area of Nizhny Novgorod, an industrial city of more than one million people on the banks of the Volga River, around 400 kilometres (250 miles) east of Moscow.
Russia's NTV television quoted a source as saying the suspects were members of the Islamic State jihadist group who had come to the city to prepare a terror attack and were renting a flat in the suburb of Tsvety.
Local residents told news agencies that security forces told them to stay calm and not leave their homes and blocked roads leading into the area.
Local media posted photographs from social networking sites apparently showing two bodies lying on the ground close to a car with doors open, as vehicles and security officers blocked the nearby road.
The photographs also showed a device identified by media as an anti-mine robot, which TASS reported was used to neutralise an explosive device in the car.
The special operation wound up on Sunday evening but there was a heightened police presence on city roads, including ID checks on drivers and passengers, TASS reported.
There was no immediate official confirmation of the operation and state television reported that details of the incident would only be released on Monday.
The regional branch of the FSB security service told Interfax news agency that it planned to release a statement after the immediate investigation was completed.
Such special operations are frequent in Russia's volatile North Caucasus against Islamist insurgents but are rare in the central region where most Russians live.
A law enforcement source quoted by TASS named those killed as "members of illegal armed groups," a term also used by officials to describe insurgents in the North Caucasus.
In August, Russian special forces raided an apartment building in the second largest city of Saint Petersburg in an operation targeting North Caucasus militants, killing four suspects.
Russian security forces shot dead two suspected “terrorists” during a security operation in the city of Nizhny Novgorod, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing law enforcement sources.
An explosion during the operation injured two officers from the special police and a third suspect was detained alive, reports said.
“Law enforcement officers stopped a car, two suspects resisted arrest and were liquidated on the spot. Explosives were found in the car,” TASS state news agency quoted a source as saying.
A law enforcement source told RIA Novosti that those killed were “suspected of terrorism.”
The special operation reportedly took place in a residential area of Nizhny Novgorod, an industrial city of more than one million people on the banks of the Volga River, around 400 kilometres (250 miles) east of Moscow.
Russia’s NTV television quoted a source as saying the suspects were members of the Islamic State jihadist group who had come to the city to prepare a terror attack and were renting a flat in the suburb of Tsvety.
Local residents told news agencies that security forces told them to stay calm and not leave their homes and blocked roads leading into the area.
Local media posted photographs from social networking sites apparently showing two bodies lying on the ground close to a car with doors open, as vehicles and security officers blocked the nearby road.
The photographs also showed a device identified by media as an anti-mine robot, which TASS reported was used to neutralise an explosive device in the car.
The special operation wound up on Sunday evening but there was a heightened police presence on city roads, including ID checks on drivers and passengers, TASS reported.
There was no immediate official confirmation of the operation and state television reported that details of the incident would only be released on Monday.
The regional branch of the FSB security service told Interfax news agency that it planned to release a statement after the immediate investigation was completed.
Such special operations are frequent in Russia’s volatile North Caucasus against Islamist insurgents but are rare in the central region where most Russians live.
A law enforcement source quoted by TASS named those killed as “members of illegal armed groups,” a term also used by officials to describe insurgents in the North Caucasus.
In August, Russian special forces raided an apartment building in the second largest city of Saint Petersburg in an operation targeting North Caucasus militants, killing four suspects.
