Russia ? Chechnya’s parliament approved a widely feared former security chief as president of the war-battered Russian republic in a nearly unanimous vote Friday, a day after President Vladimir Putin nominated him.

The confirmation of Ramzan Kadyrov, which had been seen as a foregone conclusion, cements his rise to power. His nomination won 56 votes in the 58-member, two-chamber legislature, with two ballots ruled invalid.

Human rights groups allege that security forces under Kadyrov’s control abduct and torture civilians suspected of ties to Chechnya’s separatist rebels.