Gay Chechens flee threats, beatings and exorcism.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov (R) is a firm ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin

Family pressure has fuelled a sense of persecution felt by gay people in Chechnya, a mainly Muslim region in southern Russia.

Dozens have fled and some have been granted asylum abroad, amid reports of kidnap and torture by Chechen security forces targeting gay or allegedly gay people. Chechen officials deny the reported abuses.