U.S. sanctions Chechen leader, four others under Magnitsky Act

By Joel Schectman WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday imposed new sanctions on five Russians and Chechens, including the head of the Russian republic of Chechnya, for alleged human rights abuses. The new sanctions blacklisted Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader and a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Treasury Department said in a statement. U.S. authorities accused Kadyrov of overseeing "an administration involved in disappearances and extrajudicial killings".