MOSCOW, Dec 25: Twelve rebels were killed in an operation by Russian authorities in the country’s turbulent Ingushetia region, Russian news agencies reported Thursday, citing security officials.

“Twelve members of an unlawful armed formation were eliminated in a counter-terrorist operation,” an official in the regional branch of the Federal Security Service was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti news agency.

Ten firearms and “a large quantity of ammunition” were seized in the operation in the Ingush village of Alkum, RIA Novosti quoted the official as saying in a report that was also carried by Interfax.

Russian officials had announced on Wednesday that they were launching the operation in Alkum and the neighbouring forest.

Clashes between rebels and security forces and other violent incidents are common in Ingushetia, a volatile region of southern Russia that borders war-ravaged Chechnya.—AFP