Human Rights Watch reports new wave of Chechnya gay abuse

MOSCOW – Human Rights Watch is reporting a new wave of gay men being detained and tortured in the Russian republic of Chechnya.

The group said it interviewed four gay men who had fled the conservative, predominantly Muslim region saying they were harshly abused by police, who they said used electric shocks and beat them while they were strung up by the legs. It said their accounts were consistent with a complaint filed by an LGBT activist in January.

In 2017, activists said more than 100 gay men had been detained, tortured and some of them killed in Chechnya.

HRW said in its report released Wednesday that the 2017 crackdown was not adequately investigated. Unless full investigation is conducted "we can expect further episodes of this depraved abuse," HRW's Rachel Denber said.