Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. US Hits Russia's Kadyrov with Sanctions Over Rights Abuses Charles Maynes MOSCOW - The U.S. Department of State has announced it is imposing additional sanctions against Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia's southern republic of Chechnya, in a move American officials linked to a pattern of continued human rights abuses by the Chechen strongman. "The Department has 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," said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo,[1] in a statement Monday.'¯'¯ Under the measures, Kadyrov and his family will be banned from traveling to the United States.'¯'¯ The Chechen leader was already on a U.S. blacklist under the "Magnitsky Act," a 2012 law that imposed visa bans and asset freezes on Russian officials linked to human rights abuses.'¯The law is named after Sergei Magnitsky, a 37-year-old auditor-turned- whistleblower who died in a Moscow prison in 2009. Kadyrov responded to the latest penalties with a photograph posted on his Telegram account, in which he brandished two machine guns and posed amid a large weapons cache.'¯ "Pompeo, we accept the fight," wrote Kadyrov. "Things will get even more interesting." Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also said Moscow would find a way to respond appropriately to the sanctions. "It will be difficult to respond tit-for-tat, but we will think of something," said Zakharova. Secretary Pompeo's statement indicated the restrictions would also apply to Kadyrov's wife, Medni'¯Kadyrova, and his daughters,'¯Aishat Kadyrova'¯and Karina Kadyrova -- a decision the Chechen leader took issue with [2]in an additional post online.'¯ "Well, OK, even if I violated human rights a hundred times over, how then do you explain sanctions against'¦ my wife and my daughters???" wrote Kadyrov.'¯'¯ "What crimes have they committed and whose rights have they violated?" References 1. https://www.state.gov/public-designation-of-russian-national-ramzan-kadyrov-due-to-involvement-in-gross-violations-of-human-rights/ 2. https://t.me/RKadyrov_95/981 .