Russia Detains over 1,000 Anti-Putin Protesters, Ignoring U.S. Calls to Release
Russian police waded into the crowd with batons and pepper spray, detaining more than a thousand protesters by the end of the day. Some estimates say the total is closer to two thousand.
.. Navalny himself never made it to the protest, as he was arrested while leaving his flat. He posted a photo of the swarm of officers descending upon him on Twitter with the sarcastically jaunty message, “Happy Russia Day!” Russia Day, a public holiday, fell on Monday.
.. One of the charges leveled against Navalny is that he broke an agreement with Moscow police by relocating his rally at the last minute. Police said they would allow the demonstration to proceed at the new location, provided the participants did not shout slogans or wave placards, both of which they proceeded to do with gusto. Alexander Bortnikov, head of Russia’s FSB security service, described the change of venue as a “provocation.”.. “As for those who indulged in provocative actions, breaking the law, in this case the authorities took action against them in full compliance with our legislation,” Peskov insisted... Navalny further argued that moving the location of the Moscow demonstration was not a stunt but a necessity because city authorities pressured contractors into withholding the sound and stage equipment needed. He also argued that the relocated gathering was legal under Russian constitutional guarantees of citizens’ rights to assembly.