GROZNY , Russia, April 21 (UPI) -- The leader of an al-Qaida-affiliated group in Russia's North Caucasus region was killed in a counterterrorism operation. Aliaskhab Kebekov, 43, head of the Caucasus Emirate, regarded as Russia's most militant insurgent group, was "neutralized" in an assault in Buinaksk, Dagestan, Russia's National Anti-Terrorism Committee announced Monday. Kebekov's death was confirmed by rebel websites.
Under Kebekov's leadership of about a year, his group organized an attack on the heavily fortified city of Grozny, Chechnya, in which 15 police officers were killed. The violence was regarded as an challenge to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who regards the end of conflict in Chechnya, adjacent to Dagestan, as a singular achievement of his administration.