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Chechen Leader Mocks Criticism of Rights Campaigner's Arrest

by Associated Press

   MOSCOW --

   The strongman leader of Russia's republic of Chechnya has derided
   international outrage about the arrest of a rights campaigner there.
   Speaking on local TV late Wednesday, Ramzan Kadyrov referred to rights
   defender Oyub Titiyev as a "drug-addict" and mocked U.S. and European
   criticism of his detention.
   Titiyev, the head of Chechen branch of the prominent Russian rights
   group Memorial, was arrested last week on drug possession charges he
   rejected. Rights groups called his arrest an attempt to silence
   criticism.
   Masked attackers on Wednesday torched Memorial's office in the province
   in the region of Ingushetia, which neighbors Chechnya. The group
   believes the attack is linked to the crackdown on its work in Chechnya.