Formal extradition proceedings against a senior Chechen envoy accused of being a warlord have begun in London. Akhmed Zakayev, 43, is accused by the Russian Federation of offences including waging war in the breakaway republic of Chechnya and at least 302 murders. He was remanded on conditional bail by Bow Street Magistrates Court after the actress Vanessa Redgrave, a Chechen independence campaigner and Mr Zakayev's friend, guaranteed his £50,000 bail. Mr Zakayev, deputy prime minister in the ousted Chechen government, must appear at the central London court again on 9 January, 2003.
Human rights group Amnesty International opposes his extradition, claiming that he could be tortured if he is returned to Russia. Oscar-winning British actress Vanessa Redgrave rejected the charges against Mr Zakayev and said he is a highly respected actor in his home state "not a warlord and not a terrorist". She told The Guardian newspaper: "A large number of professionally prominent people believe he is not a terrorist, a criminal, or a runaway."
Oh, well, that's okay with me then. If they don't believe he's a terrorist, how could he be? 
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