Russians seal off Chechnya_s second city.

Russian troops were reported on Sunday to have encircled Gudermes, the second biggest city in Chechnya, as Moscow sent a fresh signal to the leader of the rebel region there was still a chance of political dialogue. Interfax news agency quoted the Russian military command as saying local officials had appealed to residents and rebels to lay down their arms after Russian troops sealed off the city, 30 km (20 miles) east of the Chechen capital Grozny. Gudermes controls a road to Grozny from the east. Russian troops have already approached Grozny from north and northwest, but the military deny immediate plans to storm the city. Interfax quoted the Russian military as saying on Sunday warplanes had hit several targets in the past 24 hours, including the villages of Tolstoi-Yurt, Chishki and Chechen-Aul. Moscow says its military campaign is aimed against Islamic guerrilla groups based in Chechnya who have launched raids on neighboring Dagestan and whom Moscow blames for bomb blasts which killed nearly 300 people. Russian air raids on Chechnya and its land attack have triggered an exodus of nearly 190,000 refugees. The Chechen leadership denies any connection with the bomb blasts and say Russia_s real aim is to end the self-proclaimed independence of the region, which has been outside Moscow_s control since a 1994-96 war.