Reporters said there had been no daytime raids on the city after two weeks of intensive aerial and ground bombardment. There were even some signs of holiday cheer in the half-empty city, as workers swept up shattered glass and put decorations on a large fir tree in preparation for the New Year's holiday.
Fighting continued outside the city, however, as Russian warplanes launched fresh attacks on the outlying villages of Argun, Chishki, Atagi and Chari-Yurt, according to Ruslan Chimayev, Chechnya's deputy foreign minister.
The son of rebel Chechen leader Dzhokhar Dudayev was seriously injured, according to Chimayev. He told Interfax on Tuesday that Avlur Dudayev, 23, was wounded in fighting outside the capital on Monday but gave no details of his condition.
Fighting in Argun intensified over the weekend, despite an order from Yeltsin to suspend all military operations, with Russian tanks, artillery and snipers closing in on Chechen forces defending the strategic town 18 kilometers east of Grozny.
Since Russian tanks and troops poured into Chechnya on Dec. 11, there has been little sign of progress on the ground. If Argun were to fall, it would leave the southern exit from Grozny as the only lifeline for Chechen defenders and mark the start of a new, decisive stage in the conflict.
Russia said over the weekend that as many as 1,000 Chechen rebels were killed on Sunday and Saturday night, although Chechen fighters said the casualties were much lighter.
Meanwhile, Russian officials announced Tuesday that its strategy aims to avoid further civilian casualties. Dozens of civilians have died during the bombing raids on Grozny, launched two weeks ago.
The air force will use special laser-guided bombs against military targets in Grozny, a senior Defense Ministry official told Interfax. The official said the air force had only been able to use the high-precision weapons sparingly so far against targets in Grozny, because of bad weather hampering visibility.
While ending bomb strikes, Russia is continuing to send fresh ground forces to Chechnya, including marines from the Far East and special police units from the Ural Mountains.
The Russian government also announced Monday that Russia has set up a shadow Chechen government, grouping the "democratic opposition" to Dudayev. Moscow has long backed Dudayev's opposition and has tried to oust him through a covert proxy war before invading.
The shadow government will be headed by former opposition leader and onetime Soviet oil minister Salambek Khadzhev. Khadzhev was in Moscow on Monday to consult with Russian officials, and he told reporters that his "party of national renewal" had already gained control over several districts of the city and that Moscow was supplying money for pensions and wages.
Yeltsin's decision to use force has been widely criticized, even within high government circles. Eight members of his advisory Presidential Council, who advocate a peaceful settlement of the conflict, sent the president a letter Tuesday demanding he meet with them on the Chechnya situation.
(AP, Reuters)
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