Russia said its forces had killed more than 12,000...

Russia said its forces had killed more than 12,000 rebels in separatist Chechnya since returning to the region in 1999, but rights groups called the figures grossly exaggerated.
Diederick Lohman, head of the Moscow chapter of Human Rights Watch said: "Even if the figure includes civilians, it is very high... I would be very sceptical."
Oleg Orlov at human rights group Memorial said: "These figures have no link to reality, they are pulled out of a hat".
"They said there were only 1,500 rebel fighters left last September. Since then, official announcements of Chechen deaths total 1,224. That would leave only around 300 rebels in all of Chechnya."
Rights groups frequently complain of excessive violence during sweep operations to flush rebel fighters from Chechnya's towns and villages, particularly detentions, beatings and summary executions of young men. Moscow denies its troops carry out systematic abuses, saying any excessive use of force is investigated and punished.
Russia's backing of the U.S.-led Afghan campaign muted international criticism of its tactics in Chechnya. But the latest sharply-worded U.S. State Department report - dubbed "odious" by Moscow - condemned lack of respect for human rights in the province.