Two army deserters are rendered harmless

A stand-off between Russian forces and two army deserters has ended after one of the soldiers shot himself and the other surrendered. None of the hostages or police were hurt during the stand-off, which lasted nearly seven hours, Interfax said Thursday. At about 5 a.m. (0200 GMT), the soldiers left their post, hijacked a military truck and killed two Russian policemen on their way to Dmitrov, a suburb of Moscow, where they took several hostages, according to a &to= english.pravda.ru/main/18/88/351/13817_weapons.html ' target=_blank>Russian Defense Ministry statement. The soldiers, who are brothers, shot the police after they tried to detain the soldiers at a Moscow cafe. The soldiers then seized a taxi carrying two women, who they used as human shields until they barricaded themselves in the residential house, where two elderly people resided, citing Moscow police, informs CNN. According to the Scotsman, the pair – identified as conscripts Dmitry and Alexander Oparin – fled their garrison in the town of &to= english.pravda.ru/accidents/2003/11/13/51182.html ' target=_blank>Solnechnogorsk just north of Moscow early today after seizing assault rifles and ammunition. They killed two policemen who tried to stop them, hijacked a minibus and drove to a house in the town of Dmitrov, 37 miles north of the Russian capital, where they holed up with three hostages and were encircled by police. Alexander later shot himself dead and his brother Dmitry was arrested, police said. The brothers, who came from the Chelyabinsk region in the Ural Mountains, had served 18 months of their two-year conscription term. Desertions, killings and other violent crimes have plagued the underfunded and demoralised Russian military. Authorities in Russia say three people held hostage by &to= english.pravda.ru/printed.html?news_id=12534 ' target=_blank>military deserters north of Moscow have been freed by Police. A spokesperson says after a siege that lasted for several hours, one of the deserters killed himself and the other was captured by police. The pair had fled their garrison in the town of Solnechnogorsk in the pre-dawn hours Thursday, seizing assault rifles and ammunition. They killed two police officers who tried to stop them, hijacked a minibus and drove to a private home, reports SFRA.

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