Alikhan Merzhoyev, a militant with confirmed links to the Beslan terrorists, was killed by a Russian special force in Ingushtia on Friday, the Itar-Tass news agency reported.

"It was established that Alikhan Merzhoyev, 28, was an accomplice of the terrorists who seized a school in Beslan a year ago," Deputy Prosecutor General Nikolai Shepel told Itar-Tass.

Merzhoyev, nicknamed Mustafa, was the person telephoned by one of the militants holed up at the Beslan school at 15:13 Moscow time (1113GMT) on Sept. 3, 2004, the general said.

Merzhoyev was a close associate of Arab mercenary Abu Dzeit, spokesman for the FSB's department for Ingushetia Igor Kovalenko said earlier.

"Mezhoyev personally took part in the murder of law-enforcement personnel and civilians during the armed attack on Ingush police on June 21-22, 2004," Kovalenko said.

The militant is also suspected to be involved in two assassination attempts this year, respectively on the life of Ingush Prime minister Ibragim Malsagov on Aug. 25 and Nazran police chief Dzhabrail Kostoyev in August, according to the spokesman.

Mezhoyev fought against federal forces as a member of the so-called Bamut regiment from 1996 to 1999. He was trained by Arab mercenary Khattab, said the Itar-Tass.

In 1999, he kidnapped two officers from the North Caucasus Department of the Russian Interior Ministry for ransom.

He became the so-called emir of the Caliphate group after federal law-enforcement bodies killed its leader Magomed Khashiyev in Nazran, the report said.

Source: Xinhua