Battle for Height 776: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia
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Line 24: The '''Battle for Height 776''', part of the larger '''Battle of Ulus-Kert''', was an engagement in the [[Second Chechen War]] that took place during fighting for control of the [[Argun River (Caucasus)|Argun River]] [[Canyon|gorge]] in the highland [[Shatoysky District]] of central [[Chechnya]], between the villages of Ulus-Kert and [[Selmentauzen]]. In late February 2000, the [[Russian military]] attempted to surround and destroy a large [[Armed Forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria|Chechen force]] withdrawing from the Chechen capital [[Grozny]] to [[Shatoy]] and [[Vedeno]] in the southern mountains of Chechnya following the 1999–2000 [[Battle of Grozny (1999–2000)|siege and capture of Grozny]].<ref name=bbc>BBC News (6 March 2000) [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/667984.stm Chechen rebels besieged]</ref> On 29 February 2000, just hours after Russian Defense Minister [[Igor Sergeyev]] had assured his government that the Second Chechen War was over,<ref name="nation">''[[The Independent]]'' (15 March 2000) [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20000315/ai_n14282173 Nation grieves for lost paratroops of Pskov]</ref> an isolated Russian force composed mainly of a company of [[Russian Airborne Forces|paratroopers]] of the [[76th Airborne Division (Russia)|76th Airborne Division]] from the city of [[Pskov]] found itself cut off by a retreating Chechen column led by [[Shamil Basayev]] and [[Ibn Al-Khattab]].<ref name="fairy"/> After heavy close-quarters overnight fighting, the Russian positions on the hill were overrun and almost entirely wiped out. The [[last stand]] of the paratroopers inspired several commemorations in Russian popular culture, and fascinated Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Uncertainty continues to surround many aspects of the engagement, including the number of combatants, casualties, how much [[fire support|artillery support]] and [[close air support]] was provided, and how long the battle even lasted. | |||