Shamil Basayev has denied reports of his death. His statement was published on the Internet last night. The recording was allegedly made two days ago. Basayev said that he was absolutely healthy, had no kidney problems and his leg had never been amputated. To prove this, he stabbed a prosthetic leg with a knife twice [as heard].
Basayev said that reports about the death of another field commander, Doku Umarov, were also untrue. The rebels were simply following [Chechen separatist leader] Aslan Maskhadov's order and observing ceasefire on the whole territory of Chechnya, he said.
Reports about Basayev's death spread last week, but Chechen officials took them with a pinch of salt. The rebel's death had been reported no less than 20 times. 

Source: NTV, Moscow
BBC Monitoring