Ingush President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov said March 30 that the militant leader of the Caucasus Emirate, Doku Umarov, had not yet been found or identified following a March 28 operation by Russian security forces against a militant training camp in the North Caucasus republic of Ingushetia. There were conflicting reports as to whether Umarov was killed during this operation, and so far there have been no conclusive answers on the militant leader's status. While Umarov's impact on the North Caucasus militant landscape has become increasingly limited, he is an important militant figurehead for Moscow to eliminate, and his death or capture would demonstrate a symbolic victory to the Russian public.
