NAZRAN, Russia (August 23, 2000 Whirled Wire Service) - Russian fighter pilots, having spent days fruitlessly waiting for the opportunity to kill Chechens again, instead rained bombs down on Chechnya's mountains Wednesday in what officials said was the heaviest bombardment on a non-human target in the history of warfare, and a stark illustration of combat fatigue.
The bombardment of the Vedeno Gorge, which winds through heavily forested mountains, was preceded by hours of artillery bombardment and rocket strikes, said officials with the Russian administration in Gudermes, Chechnya's second-largest city.
An official speaking on condition of anonymity said the southern Argun and Itum-Kale Gorges also came under heavy air and artillery attack Wednesday, because, "at that point, we figured, who cares?"
This action taken by Russian troops has galvanized opposition from the world's environmental movement, who have also complained about a recent incident, where bored soldiers spread a thick layer of oil and emergency flares on a Chechen lake and then set it on fire as an impromptu fireworks show.
Russian troops withdrew from Chechnya in defeat at the end of a 1994-96 war, then moved back in last September in a bid to crush the rebels, who had invaded a neighboring region and were also blamed for a series of apartment bombings in Moscow and other Russian cities.
The federal troops quickly took the northern third of Chechnya and in February the capital Grozny fell to the Russians after months of relentless bombardment. With few remaining live targets in the region, experts say that the war hardened Russian military is now redifining the concept of "letting off steam".
In the latest round of mountain bombing on Wednesday, two Russian servicemen enjoying
a picturesque picnic break were wounded when eighteen 2-ton bombs were dropped around them.
In a separate incident, three Interior Ministry soldiers were wounded when their car was boobytrapped by some of playful cohorts, who had rigged a strip of 100 firecrackers to the rear bumper, accidentally igniting the fuel tank.
According to President Vladimir Putin, orders have been issued asking superior officers to keep an eye on their subordinates, but added, "In the end, they're just some boys trying to have fun. Who can deny that massive explosions and raging infernos are a thing of beauty? Besides, no one died, and you don't hear the mountains complaining."
As of Thursday morning, the next move rumored to be made by the Russian military is to launch a load of cruise missiles into each other and see what happens. But only after they have had some alcohol first.
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RUSSIAN JETS BOMBARD CHECHEN MOUNTAINS WHEN FRUSTRATED BY LACK OF HUMAN TARGETS
