A picture released by the Russian National Anti-Terrorism Committee shows the car used by the two gangsters.

MOSCOW, March 14 (Xinhua) -- Russian law enforcement officers have killed two people who were plotting a terrorist attack in the southwestern Stavropol region, the National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAC) said Thursday.

When law enforcement agencies tried to stop a suspicious vehicle on the night of Wednesday, the people in the car opened fire with automatic weapons, used a grenade and tried to escape, the NAC said in a statement.

Two gangsters, who were supporters of the Islamic State (IS) and were planning a terrorist attack in the region, were killed in the crossfire, it said.

Weapons, ammunition and a grenade were seized at the scene. Officers are working to find possible accomplices to the suspects, it added.