Swedish prosecutor seizes Chechen Web site servers

STOCKHOLM, May 6 (Reuters) - A Swedish prosecutor has seized two computers that host a Web site used by Chechen separatists, the organiser of the site said on Saturday.

Mikael Storsjo, of Swedish-Finnish origin and who sympathises with the rebels in the Russian republic, said a prosecutor had seized two Stockholm servers used by the Web site www.kavkazcenter.com after a complaint from the Russian Embassy that some of the material promoted the use of violence.

The Web site was still available to view on Lithuanian-based servers at www.kavkazcenter.net.

"They have the servers and for the moment the main Web site is down. We are going to re-open it, in the same place, in the same room and with the same Internet," Storsjo told Reuters.

"We are plugging in a new server and we will take it to court. I don't think the prosecutor has this right."

"This is definitely an issue of freedom of speech."

The prosecutor's office was not available to comment on the incident.

The Web site is one of the main ways the Chechen rebels communicate with the outside world, but Russia strongly objects to it. The site has often posted statements by rebels claiming responsibility for attacks in Russia.

Chechen separatists have been fighting Russian rule for more than a decade. Moscow says the war is all but over, but clashes between troops and rebels occur daily.

Storsjo said he had moved the servers from Finland to Sweden in 2004 after pressure from the Finnish Security Police. He said material for the Web site was provided by people based in Sweden, Georgia and Azerbaijan.