Our correspondent Julia Kalinina informs from Grozny

"Moskovsky Komsomolets", February 4, 1995, p. 1

Life in Grozny is accompanied by cannonade rumble. "Minutka" is bombed persistently. It is most terrible at night, but in the morning it is not too better. Gas is still delivered to the city, so torches are burning where communications were destroyed. Only those torches and flashing sky light. Cars run with headlights off along demolished streets.

Residents of the city seem having got used to such a life. Yesterday morning it was serene several hours, and people appeared on the streets. Even a little market functioned. But in general everybody live in basements. Government too. The whole Minister Cabinet is in the city.

According to Movladi Udugov, Chechen Minister of information, there was no Dudayev's command not to let journalists pass to Grozny. Misinformation of Russian government was provided to block up journalists' activity.

The situation in Grozny remains difficult, but stable, said Udugov in his interview to the journalist of "Moskovsky Komsomolets" newspaper. Since February 1 federal army tried to occupy Prigorodnoye, an important strategic village, that stays on a southern road. Fresh squads were transferred from Mozdok to onslaught the village. According to words of captives, those squads were told that battle is over, so they have just to disarm bands in the village.

That attack was suppressed, many items of rifles, sharpshooter rifles, and mortars were seized. Landing troopers' squad surrendered back to north-eastern line Petropavlovskoye -- Khankala. Now Russian army is stretched alone the line Tolstoy-Jurt -- Petropavlovskoye -- Berkatiurt -- Khankala -- Berdikel village (the latter is completely destroyed by bombing several days ago). In Grozny itself, battles continue around Sadovoye Koltso, Tbilisskaya st., Leninsky regional draft committee, 2 km around Boronovsky bridge and around "Kosmos" cinema -- all along the Sonzhap river. According to State Defence Committee, number of killed Chechen government forces and Territorial army soldiers is about 800. According to Chechen side, 30 thousand unprotected people died before January 30, most of them are children, old people, and women, and 80-85 per cent of then are Russian.

Russian armies, according to Chechen information, have lost about 8000 soldiers before January 21. As to Headquarters Chief General Maskhadov, Russian side uses weapons of mass destruction: spike and ball bombs, phosphorus mines.

Today Chechen side keeps about 300 Russian military captives. Mainly they are 18 year old boys, many of them being wounded. Chechens can hardly feed them, because there is only one free road to the city, and even there one must slip between bombardments, so food for extra 300 men is a problem. However, Russian command suggests to exchange only with peaceful residents, those who were captured and sent to filtration camps. Obviously, there are no soldiers kept by Russian side, or they do not want to exchange them. In such conditions Chechens refuse to exchange captives. On Wednesday in Zavodsky part of Grozny, three Russian captives were exchanged to two killed Chechens. Dead bodies were terribly mutilated, cut, broken, and tormented. Procurator General Usman Imayev told me, that he never could even imagine that people could do it. As he said, after that case, hundreds of ex-peaceful citizens will rise weapons.