"In the first of 150 similar cases, the [European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg] ruled that Russia had violated the right to life of Mr Yandiyev and failed to conduct a proper investigation.

It ordered Moscow to pay his mother €35,000 (£24,500) in compensation for the inhumane treatment that she endured while trying to ascertain her son's fate. Mr Yandiyev, who had travelled to Chechnya in search of his father, was never seen again. His body has not been found.

General Baranov was promoted in 2004 and received a Hero of Russia medal in 2005. He now commands all the troops in southern Russia.

"I hope that now I can find the truth and my country will answer the question: where is my son?" Mrs Bazorkina, who lives in Ingushetia, told The Times. "My case is not the only one. Other mothers will see that I have won and will now take their cases to the European court."

The court has ruled against Russia several times, but this ruling has set a precedent for at least 150 more Chechen disappearance cases under consideration in Strasbourg.

Human rights groups say that many others could follow, as up to 5,000 people have disappeared in Chechnya since 1999, when Russian troops re-entered the region." click to read article in full

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