Russian authorities say President Dmitri Medvedev has accepted the resignation of the leader of the country's Republic of Ingushetia.
Murat Zyazikov says he resigned to take another job in Moscow.
But some Russian news reports say Mr. Medvedev fired him.
Officials say Mr. Medvedev named Yunus-Bek Yevkurov as Ingushetia's acting president. Yevkurov has been serving as deputy chief of the Volga-Urals Military Region.
Zyazikov, a former top KGB officer, had served as Ingush president since 2002.
His policies had prompted repeated anti-government demonstrations by residents of Ingushetia, which has seen a spike in violence blamed on criminal gangs and Islamic militants.
Ingushetia borders Chechnya, where Russian forces have been battling separatists for more than a decade.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and AP.