UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called on Russia to respect the rule of law while fighting Chechen rebels, after Moscow said today it would attack terrorist bases anywhere in the world.
On a visit to Mexico, Mr Annan said Russia needed to come up with ways and means of fighting terrorism effectively but these approaches must not undermine the rule of law and basic civil rights.
Mr Annan was responding to a comments from Russia's Chief of Staff General Yuri Baluevsky who said the military would liquidate bases used by terrorists even if they were outside Russia.
He added this did not mean his country would launch nuclear strikes.
A spokesman for the Chechen leader, Aslan Maskhadov, warned that Russia may try to assassinate Chechen leaders living in Europe.
The Russian government has accused Mr Maskhadov and another Chechen rebel leader, Shamil Basayev, of being behind last week's massacre at the school in Beslan.
The government has also offered 300 million rubles, equivalent to €8.5 million, for information leading to their arrests.
In a separate development, the president of North Ossetia has said the republic's government will resign within two days.
The announcement came as Beslan residents buried more of the 335 people killed in the bloody end to the siege at the school.
Dramatic video footage shot inside the school has been shown on Russian TV.
The NTV station said the pictures of the video it aired on Tuesday were recorded by the assailants.
Meanwhile, the British Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, said Russia's threat to carry out pre-emptive strikes against terrorist bases outside its territory is ‘understandable’ and within international law.
