Reports from Chechnya say an attempt has been made to assassinate the Chechen religious leader, Mufti Akhmad Khadzhi Kadirov.

Russian news reports say a bomb was detonated as his car approached his home, in the capital, Grozny.

The mufti and his bodyguard escaped unhurt but the car caught fire and the driver was injured.

The incident follows a call by the mufti on Sunday for kidnap gangs in Chechnya to be wiped out.

He made the statement after a bomb attack killed the head of the Chechen police unit which is trying to halt the wave of kidnappings in the republic.