Much of the fighting in Chechnya these days—a small-scale partisan war of hit- and-run attacks and harassment—is being led by a new generation of young commanders. Half a year ago many seemed ready to dismiss Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov as a man of the past, hopelessly overtaken by events. Now, though they continue to emphasize their devotion to the Arab-born commander Khattab, who is usually associated with Islamic fundamentalism, they are careful to stress their allegiance to their President and Commander-in-chief, Maskhadov. Below are excerpts from a conversation with a guerrilla commander in his mid-20s operating in Grozny. He is articulate and well-educated, but the reader should bear in mind that Chechen guerrillas frequently announce plans to seize major cities and have not yet shown any sign of being able to do so.

How do you operate in Grozny?
We slipped back one by one after the Russians captured the city, established our cover stories and then started operating. I came back later than most because I was fairly seriously wounded in last year's fighting and needed three months to recover. We work in reconnaissance and sabotage teams of four to five fighters. There are many such groups in the city. At the moment, we operate autonomously, but once the word comes for a general counter-offensive, we will be assigned specific responsibilities. We set radio-controlled mines, attack army trucks and shoot Russian soldiers who stray from secure areas—who get drunk or go off chasing women, for example. We also kill traitors and informers—we have a long list of these. During one recent operation we fired a rocket at the officers' quarters in Khankala [the Russian military headquarters for Chechnya]. We have little problem moving around at night, despite the Russian "secret" ambush units. Sometimes they seem to ignore us, perhaps because they know we are very heavily armed. Many of the Russian troops here are demoralized and incompetent, but they have some effective combat troops, such as the Airborne and army special forces.

When will the offensive start?
Sometime later this year, probably—the summer or autumn. We plan to capture major Chechen towns, and if the Russians react with their usual cruelty, seize military bases inside Russia. Retaking Grozny will not be a serious problem. Even now we have enough forces in the city to seize and hold it for a week. In addition to our guerrilla units, there are plenty of fighters who are just waiting for the word to take up arms again. After a week, though, we would need reinforcements from the hills. They will come. In preparation for the offensive, we are building up our weapons supplies. We need some larger items like artillery pieces for the offensive. We can get these from the Russians. There are people here who specialize in buying weapons from Russian units.

How are you organized?
Most of the old guard of mujahedin leaders have gone. A new, younger generation has taken their place. We are subordinated to Khattab, but the last word belongs to our chief emir, Maskhadov. He is our President and Commander-in- chief. Khattab, though, is an outstanding leader, a brilliant and very rational military organizer, who plans well, looks after his men and ensures that his units are well supplied. Our commanders are constantly in touch with Maskhadov and each other by satellite phone. After the war we will settle the question of kidnappers and other criminals once and for all. They will be subject to Shari'a law. And if we have to use artillery to crush them, we will.

By Paul Quinn-Judge

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