Russians Attack Chechen Stronghold

In a move that raised new questions about President Boris Yeltsin’s campaign promise to end the war in Chechnya, the Russian military has attacked the main rebel stronghold in the secessionist republic.

Gen. Vyacheslav Tikhomirov, the Russian commander in Chechnya, asserted on Tuesday that as many as 170 rebels had been killed in the attack on Novogroznensky.

The Russians say that as many as 1,000 Chechen fighters had taken up defensive positions in the fortified town. Thirty Russian soldiers also died in the fight, Tikhomirov said.

The stepped-up fighting comes less than a week after Yeltsin announced his intention to seek re-election and promised to arrive at an early solution to the widely unpopular war.