(3 Dec 1999) +++CLIENTS PLEASE NOTE THIS STORY CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES / DEAD BODIES+++

Russian/Nat
The Russian military command says its troops have almost surrounded Grozny, the capital of the breakaway republic of Chechnya.
Fierce fighting now rages around the towns of Argun and Urus-Martan, key gateways to the capital.
APTN has obtained fresh pictures filmed in Grozny, showing the havoc wrought by the constant Russian air attacks.
A handful of rebels survey the aftermath of the latest Russian aerial and artillery attack on Grozny.
A huge crater has appeared at the site of one of the bombs.
Starving dogs sniff through the wreckage, in the vain search for food.
Rebels look through the documents of those who didn't survive the attack.
Two men and five women civilians lay dead, caught by the attack as they scoured the market for something to eat.
The Russians have bombarded the rebels from afar in the hope that they will retreat without a full-scale infantry battle.
But there are increasing signs that Chechen rebels are putting up a tough defence of Grozny and its surrounding suburbs.
The latest fierce fighting suggests that the relatively easy advance by federal forces may be over.
While Russia's soldiers are into their third month of war, for many Chechen rebels the war is only just beginning.
According to officials in neighbouring Ingushetia, about 200 Russian soldiers were killed and 50 more who had been taken prisoner were slain by having their throats slit.
The Russians deny there was an ambush, saying only four Russians were killed in fighting around Urus-Martan.
But civilian refugees who passed through the area described an attack on the Russian troops and reported seeing the severed heads of Russian soldiers on the frozen ground.
SOUNDBITE: (Russian)
"They were all trading at the market when a plane flew over and dropped its bombs, a Russian plane of course, and then flew off. There are two men dead but the rest are women."
SUPER CAPTION: Ruslan, Bystander
SOUNDBITE: (Russian)
"We will slit the throats of pilots and mercenaries on the spot. It's not cruel because mercenaries came here for money and pilots kill innocent people. So there'll be no mercy to them. As far as soldiers go, if they fall prisoner we'll put them to work cleaning up or doing something similar."
SUPER CAPTION: Rebel Fighter


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