A narrow dirt and gravel road that leads to the village of Balakhani 120 miles west of Makhachkala, the capital of the Russian republic of Dagestan. The violence in Dagestan, and in neighboring regions, is not easy to classify -- a mix of rebels who want independence from Russia, Islamist extremists, and local clan and gang warfare and sectarian strife.
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(Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)