The Russian lawyer Stanislav Markelov, who acted for the family of a Chechnya girl strangled by a Russian officer was killed by a unknown gunman in downtown Moscow Monday evening, Russian and world information agencies reported.

Markelov has been shot in the head with a gun with a silencer. Anastasya Baburova, a reporter for the Russian daily "Novaya Gazeta" has been seriously wounded in the shooting and later died from her injuries in a hospital.

Markelov was the lead prosecutor in the case of Yuri Bodanov, the Russian officer accused and convicted of killing Kheda Kungayeva, 18, during the Russian military operation in Chechnya.

Budanov confessed to strangling Kungayeva in 2000, saying he had acted in a fit of rage while interrogating her, suspecting she was a sniper.

Budanov was the first Russian officer to be prosecuted for killing a civilian during the conflict in Chechnya. He was subsequently jailed for 10 years and was released on January 15 with more than a year of his sentence to serve. The decision led to mass protests in Chechnya.

Markelov had voiced outrage after the officer's early release. He was shot just after a news conference where he announced he would appeal the Cassation Court decision to reject his complaint about Budanov's release and that he would also appeal to an International Court.

Russian authorities said the two murders are under investigation.

Tuesday, the Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis issued the following statement on the murder of the human rights lawyer and the journalist:

"The murder of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova on the streets of Moscow is only the most recent attack onВ  people working for human rights in Chechnya. It follows the murder of another Russian citizen, Umar Ismailov, in Vienna last week, the abduction of the alleged torture victim Mokhamadsalakh Masayev in Chechnya a few months ago and the murder ofВ  the journalist Anna Politkovskaya in Moscow two years ago. It may be significant that both Mokhamadsalakh Masayev and Anna Politkovskaya had been represented by one of the latest victims, Stanislav Markelov, as their lawyer. These crimes may not be connected, but until they are properly investigated by the Russian authorities and all those responsible are brought to justice, there will be a shadow over the state of the rule of law, the freedom of expression and the commitment to human rights in the Russian Federation."

Dick Marty (Switzerland, ALDE), rapporteur for the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) on the human rights situation in the north Caucasus, expressed his profound indignation following the murder of prominent human rights lawyer Stanislas Markelov.

"I was deeply shocked to learn of the murder of Stanislas Markelov, whose untiring efforts to combat the impunity of those responsible for human rights violations in Chechnya and elsewhere in the north Caucasus cost him his life. This murder shows that the remedies against human rights violations are still fraught with pitfalls and dangers. Urgent action is needed by the competent Russian authorities to shed full light on this matter and to send out a strong signal against these criminal acts going unpunished and becoming more widespread, and calling for the establishment of the rule of law."

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