A crackdown on protesters at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s election headquarters in Moscow has led to the detention of several individuals, including journalists from foreign press organizations, according to independent reports on Saturday.
The protest, organized by the wives of mobilized men, addresses the growing movement demanding the return of husbands and sons from fighting in Ukraine.
Video evidence reveals Russian authorities detaining people with “Press” vests near Red Square. The “500 Days of Mobilization” rally started at the Kremlin walls before moving to Putin’s election headquarters.
SOTAvision, an independent Russian news outlet, reported security forces randomly snatching individuals, predominantly men, from the crowd.
At least 27 people, with only one identified as a protester, were taken to Kitay-Gorod station and are currently held, as reported by OVD-info, a group monitoring Russian repression.
Journalists from Kommersant, France Press, and Spiegel, along with human rights activists, were among those detained, according to Mediazona, an independent Russian media group.
Seven journalists covering the rally were taken to Basmanny police station, including Andrei Zaiko from the Japanese television company “Fuji.” A state media employee was released, along with three minors, from Kitay-Gorod, while the rest of the media personnel were told of planned releases, excluding “foreign agents” representatives, who were to remain in police custody.
The expanded foreign agents law in Russia, implemented in late 2022, includes individuals or groups “under foreign influence,” aiming to silence critics of the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine, including journalists.
