Special to WorldTribune.com

Compiled by Miles Yu, Geostrategy-Direct.com

The U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee approved a bill this week that would blacklist several dozen Russian officials linked to the November 2009 death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.

The Kremlin has responded vehemently to the proposed action, promising to blacklist certain U.S. officials from entering Russia.

Magnitsky was a lawyer who worked for the UK-based Hermitage Capital Management firm in Russia.

In that capacity, he accused Russian tax and police officials of embezzling $230 million and was arrested by Russian police. He was beaten to death while in police custody, triggering an uproar from Russian and international human rights groups.

The Kremlin has tried to cover up the crime and has refused to cooperate with independent investigations.

The outrage reverberated in Washington. Last year, a group of U.S. senators led by John McCain (R-AZ) introduced a bill that would blacklist Russian officials involved in the case from entering the United States.

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  Foreign Affairs Committee, Hermitage Capital Management, Kremlin, Moscow vows ‘response’ if U.S. passes bill named for whistleblower, Sen. John McCain, Sergei Magnitsky