It was a surprise attack.. this building in Grozny where a local media agency is housed, coming under fire from unknown assailants.<br/> <br />Authorities say at least 16 people were killed, including ten police officers and six of the gunmen. Another 28 people are said to have been wounded.<br/> <br />Chechnyan officials say the attackers first opened fire at a police patrol car, killing three officers... and then stormed the building.<br/> <br />The assault took place just hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin's state of the union speech... where he vowed to defend Russia against, what he called, efforts to dismember it.<br/> <br />As daylight broke, the buildings continued to burn... a reminder of the fragile security situation in Chechnya where observers say, an Islamist insurgency is reemerging in defiance of Putin's attempts to maintain control.
