Russian statistics for this human catastrophe are particularly distressing: provided by the Russian Human Rights organisation Memorial, by the Russian Interior Ministry (MVD), and by the Russian Ministry of Health run as follows: Out of a population of 1,200,000 in 1999

	Over 200,000 people have been made homeless inside Chechnya
	57,000 civilians have been maimed as a result of military action or mines
	Half a million mines have been dropped on the borders of Chechnya - the number of mines inside Chechnya is unknown
	98,000 people need urgent medical assistance

The number of casualties is impossible to assess accurately – figures vary from 80,000 to 200,000 killed in the last fifteen years. Memorial has recorded 20,000 deaths and over 3,000 have disappeared without traces during the "clean-up" operations conducted by the Russian forces. The Russian Ministry of Health has recorded 28,000 orphans.

These stark figures give only a glimpse of the tragedy unfolding today. Many casualties and victims do not find their way into Russian statistics. Anyone wanting to record or complain about the extra-judiciary killing of a relative or friend risks disappearing himself.