WASHINGTON. Dec 10 (Interfax) - The United States Department of State has declared imposing sanctions on the head of the Russian Interior Ministry's branch for the Grozny city, Aslan Iraskhanov, for human rights violations, the agency said in a statement on its website on Tuesday.
"The Department has designated Aslan Iraskhanov, Head of the Ministry of Interior Affairs for the city of Grozny in the Chechen Republic of the Russian Federation, for his involvement in gross violations of human rights," the statement said.
"In his prior position as the head of the A.A. Kadyrov police unit, Iraskhanov was credibly alleged to be responsible for the summary execution of 27 men," it said.
"We note with concern the continued abuses and gross violations of human rights in Chechnya, which include widespread patterns of extrajudicial killings, torture, enforced disappearances, and arbitrary detention by government authorities," the statement said.
"The Russian government fails to take adequate steps to prosecute or punish officials involved in these abuses and violations, fostering a climate of impunity," the U.S. Department of State said.