In the Russian republic of Chechnya, five Russian police officers died on Sunday when they walked into an ambush. The officers were on patrol in the south of the country when they were fired on with machine guns and hand grenades.

The attack, in which another six officers were inured, is thought to have been carried out by Chechen Islamist rebels. In April, Russia ceased its ten-year military operation against the rebels in the hope that this would lead to peace in the country.

However, in the past few weeks, violence has flared up again in the region. Five people also died in attacks at the weekend in the neighbouring republics of Dagestan and Ingushetia.

Deadly clashes between government forces and rebels are common in Chechnya, a predominantly Muslim region in the North Caucasus mountains. The region was the site of two wars between separatists and Russia's central government after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Flag of Chechnya from Wikimedia Commons