21.   Many rebels belong to the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect and are seeking an independent Islamic republic in the mostly Muslim regions of the Caucasus Mountains.

22.   Many of the militants apparently belong to the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect and are seeking an independent Islamic republic in the mostly Muslim regions of the Caucasus Mountains.

23.   Many of the militants fighting in Dagestan apparently belong to the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect and are seeking an independent Islamic republic in the mostly Muslim Caucasus Mountains region.

24.   Many of the militants belong to the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect and are seeking an independent Islamic republic in the mostly Muslim regions of the Caucasus Mountains.

25.   Many of the militants fighting in Dagestan apparently belong to the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect and are seeking an independent Islamic republic in the mostly Muslim Caucasus Mountain region.

26.   Members of the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect have also announced plans to elect a religious government, saying it would be independent from central authorities, Interfax reported.

27.   Members of a fundamentalist Islamic sect circulated leaflets warning authorities in the southern Russian region of Dagestan not to try to disarm them, a news agency said Thursday.

28.   Russia and Uzbekistan, in particular, have blamed Wahhabis, a fundamentalist Islamic sect that originated in Saudi Arabia.

29.   Tension has intensified in recent weeks, as Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov began a crackdown on the Wahhabis, the fundamentalist Islamic sect blamed for many abductions and attacks.

30.   The cause of the overnight fighting between members of the fundamentalist Wahhabi sect of Islam and other rebels was unclear.