A bomb has exploded close to the central market in the Russian city of Vladikavkaz, near Chechnya, killing two people and injuring several others.
Russian news agencies report that one car was ablaze and windows in a nearby building were shattered when a suspected car bomb exploded in the southern Russian city of Vladikavkaz.
No group has claimed responsibility for the blast, which went off near the town's shopping and cultural area Tuesday evening. According to reports from the town, among those injured were soldiers who were riding in a truck that was passing the car just as it exploded.
Vladikavkaz is the provincial capital of North Ossetia, which is located west of Chechnya, where Russian federal forces and Chechen separatists have been locked in a guerrilla-style war since 1994.
Russia's Itar-Tass news agency reports that officials from the Federal Security Service, the Interior Ministry and the Russian Prosecutor's office are setting up a joint investigation of the blast.