On the Eve of Putin's inauguration, Opposition supporters arrested for violating the rules

RT
Sat, 05 May 2018 00:00 UTC

© Kirill Kudryavtsev

Opposition supporters shout slogans during an unauthorized rally in Moscow

Supporters of opposition figure Aleksei Navalny gathered for rallies across Russia on Saturday. The activist was detained at the unauthorized rally in Moscow, police confirmed.

Some 1,500 people gathered for the unsanctioned protest in the center of Moscow, police said in a statement.

Navalny, who was banned from participating in the March presidential elections due to a five-year suspended sentence, called on Russians to hold a day of rallies across the country on the eve of Vladimir Putin's inauguration, scheduled for May 7.

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The activist himself was detained at an unsanctioned rally in the Russian capital on Saturday for violating rules on organizing public demonstrations, police confirmed.

© Evgeny Odinokov / Sputnik

Police officers on Pushkin Square in Moscow

As of 6:30pm local time, some 300 people had been detained in Moscow during the unsanctioned protests, police said.

Earlier, the prosecutor's office in Moscow said that it had offered the event's organizers several venues for the rally, but all options were rejected. The office then warned the protesters that other venues where they were planning to march were unauthorized.

© Evgeny Odinokov / Sputnik

Police officers detain a participant in an unsanctioned opposition rally on Pushkin Square in Moscow

Around 2,000 took part in the another unsanctioned protest in St. Petersburg, according to local police. Some 200 "active participants" in the protest have been detained.

Protests have been held in other cities across Russia as well. While some gatherings were sanctioned by the authorities, others were held without the required permits. The protests were largely incident-free, according to police. A number of protesters, however, were detained during unsanctioned rallies in several cities, namely in Krasnoyarsk, Samara, RIA Novosti reported, citing police. In other cities, such as Omsk, Cheboksary, Ufa and other locations, law enforcement did not detain anyone during the unauthorized gatherings, as protesters peacefully dispersed after warnings.

© Kirill Kudryavtsev / AFP

© Kirill Kudryavtsev / AFP

© Tatyana Makeyeva / Reuters