Late last week, Russian forces launched a massive bombardment of the Chechen capital, inaugurating a new offensive using more high-powered artillery than had been previously employed in the conflict. Chances for a peaceful resolution diminished earlier this month when Yeltsin rejected appeals from Western leaders to find a political settlement to the strife. Yeltsin and Russian officials insist...

In March 2001, Human Rights Watch released this new report. "The Dirty War in Chechnya: Forced Disappearances, Torture and Summary Executions" details recent abuses of human rights by the Soviet Union in their continued efforts to subdue the province of Chechnya. The report describes the cases of 52 "disappeared" individuals who were last seen in the custody of Russian federal forces.