Moscow, Jul 20 (AP) The United States on Monday slapped the regional strongman leader of Russia's republic of Chechnya with sanctions over human rights violations.

Ramzan Kadyrov, 43, has run Chechnya like his personal fiefdom, relying on his security forces to quash dissent. International human rights groups have accused Kadyrov and his lieutenants of abductions, torture and killings of their opponents.

Also Read | 751 COVID-19 Positive Cases Reported in Jammu And Kashmir Today: Live News Breaking and Coronavirus Updates on July 20, 2020.

Rights defenders also hold the Chechen authorities responsible for a sweeping crackdown on gays over the past few years that has seen more than 100 people arrested, subjected to torture, with some of them killed. Chechen authorities have denied those accusations, and federal authorities said a probe found nothing to support the charges.

In a statement announcing the sanctions, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pointed at “extensive credible information that Kadyrov is responsible for numerous gross violations of human rights dating back more than a decade, including torture and extrajudicial killings.”

Also Read | COVID-19 Vaccine Update: UK's Oxford-AstraZeneca Eyes September Rollout, Russia to Release 'Next Month', India's Covaxin In Clinical Trial Stage.

Pompeo said the restrictions will apply to Kadyrov's wife and two daughters and he encouraged US allies to take similar measures. The Kremlin has relied on Kadyrov to stabilize Chechnya after two separatist wars, providing generous federal subsidies and dismissing international criticism of his rule.

The Kremlin also has stood by Kadyrov amid Russian opposition claims of his involvement in the 2015 killing of prominent Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov, which the Chechen leader has rejected. An officer in Chechnya's security forces was convicted of shooting Nemtsov on a bridge adjacent to the Kremlin and received a 20-year prison term. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)