By Sarah Rainsford BBC Moscow correspondent

The group says people of Chechnya are living in a state of terror

Returning from a five-day visit to the region, a team from the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHFHR) delivered a damning assessment of the situation, citing what it called a high level of grave abuses.

The IHFHR says things are getting worse in Chechnya, despite the Kremlin's statement that life inside the breakaway republic is returning to normal.

The group is now calling on Russia to invite a United Nations special rapporteur to the region to investigate the disappearance of hundreds of civilians.

Authorities 'implicated'

After the visit to the region, the team says the security situation remains grave and the people of Chechnya are living in a state of terror.

Thousands of Russian troops remain in Chechnya

At best, it reports, the Russian authorities are making insufficient effort to tackle human rights abuses. At worst, it says, they themselves are directly implicated.

It also says the practice of arbitrary detention is now spreading over the border into Ingushetia.

Moscow points to the referendum it staged in March as proof that the military campaign in Chechnya is over.

It says it is time for the people forced to flee the conflict to make their way home.

Most refugees in Ingushetia, though, do not believe it is safe.