At least eight die in Chechnya

3,000 Russian servicemen have died in Chechnya

Six Russian soldiers and the head of a village administration are reported to have been killed in a wave of rebel attacks in Chechnya.

Saikhan Chukayev, head of the administration in Novaya Zhizn, and his driver were killed when their car was drove over a landmine before coming under rebel fire.

Meanwhile four Russian servicemen have been killed in 16 separate attacks on Russian positions and checkpoints over the past 24 hours, the official said.

Two other soldiers were killed and two were wounded when their jeep hit a mine in capital Grozny.

The Itar-Tass news agency reported that Russian interior ministry forces had killed four rebels in the vicinity of Grozny in 24 hours.

The agency, quoting the interior ministry, said three of the rebels were killed in a shoot-out and one died when troops came across a group of insurgents laying a landmine on a road

Police in Grozny found the bodies of three men in the central market on Wednesday, the Interfax news agency reported.

They had been shot and killed the night before, police said.

Tensions run high

The bodies of seven people were also found gunned down in the village of Kirov-Yurt in the Vedeno district south of Grozny, Chechen prosecutor Viktor Dakhnov told Interfax.

"All of them were killed in their homes," Mr Dakhnov said, adding that "a note was found which contained threats to residents of the village that are co-operating with the federal authorities."

There was also a bomb attack in the town of Kurchaloi, 30 kilometres (18 miles) east of Grozny, apparently targeting a cafe frequented by Russian soldiers

The violence follows the deaths of five Chechen men reportedly killed by Russian troops on Monday. Chechnya's rebel president, Aslan Maskhadov, said they had been civilians. Russian security forces said they were armed rebels.

Russian troops have been stationed in Chechnya since 1999 following their return after 1994-96 separatist war.