At least eight militants were killed during a police assault on a militant hideout in Daghestan, a republic in Russia`s troubled North Caucasus, a local police source said Monday.

The militants were reported holed up in a private house in Makhachkala, the capital of Daghestan. Police, supported by an armored vehicle, launched the first assault early Monday and continued to spray the house with automatic gunfire throughout the morning.

"One of the militants has been identified," the source said. "It is the leader of the Buinaksk group Khizri Mamayev, who was involved in an attack on federal soldiers on November 4, which killed two people."

Earlier reports said four women with children left the building unharmed prior to the first assault.

No police casualties have been reported.
sections: Accidents, Region News
areas: Southern region