Two security officers have been killed and one wounded during a special operation against militants in the Russian Republic of Dagestan. Three alleged militants hiding out in the forests in the Khasavyurt district were shot dead.

Dagestani officials say that earlier the men carried out a number of assaults against police officers.

The Republic’s Internal Affairs Ministry says that it's likely all the militants spotted were killed by Special Forces. “After the dug-out with militants was blocked by Special Forces, they were shooting back, but now it’s confirmed that three of them have killed. Early reports suggested that there were up to five combatants, but currently it’s considered that there were three of them and no one managed to escape,” Anzhela Martirosova noted.