Six people were killed and two others injured in an explosion in Russia's troubled north Caucasus region of Ingushetia on Thursday, the Interfax news agency reported.

A landmine exploded in the village of Surkhakhi in the Nazran district, killing six people, including a top interior ministry official and a deputy head of the police, Interfax quoted a regional official as saying.

A group of investigators have left for the scene, the official said.

The Itar-Tass news agency quoted a local interior ministry official as saying that six people died and two others were injured when disposing of the explosive device.

Ingushetia, which borders the war-scarred Caucasus republic of Chechnya, is plagued by daily violence. Attacks targeting security forces and officials are common in the region.

(Xinhua News Agency March 5, 2009)