In other world news, Russian forces have killed Chechen rebel leader Aslan Maskhadov, one of Russia’s most wanted men in Chechnya. In 1997 Maskhadov was elected president of the republic after the first Russo-Chechen war. He was seen as a moderate force within the Chechen independence movement and had advocated negotiations to end the bloody 10-year conflict with Moscow. One longtime ally said “He was a restraining force. He was trying to prevent this conflict from escalating and spreading throughout the North Caucasus.”