Russian news agencies said Ansar Tipuyev, Deputy Prime Minister of Karachayevo-Cherkessia, died when a hail of bullets struck his car.

Police launched a manhunt after the gunmen fled the scene. The motive for the attack was not clear.

The republic lies west of war-torn Chechnya and North Ossetia, which suffered the Beslan school siege.

Mr Tipuyev, 52, was previously Karachayevo-Cherkessia's first deputy interior minister. He had been deputy prime minister since September 2003.

Russian media say the republic has been hit by a string of attacks on law enforcement officials in recent months.