3,000 Arrested In Russia As Anti-War In Ukraine Protests Turn Violent

More than 3,000 people protesting the war in Ukraine have been arrested in Russia, as the demonstrations in Moscow and St Petersburg grew violent again on Saturday evening.

The number of people detained, reported by AFP, is as of Thursday, the second day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Protests against the Russian invasion of Ukraine continued into Saturday evening for the third straight day, despite many arrests. Images emerged of police officers detaining protesters in St Petersburg, both men and women.

Police in St Petersburg took away a young woman carrying a black bag with the words, ‘No war’, according to the news site SotaVision.

A group of anonymous St Petersburg protesters wore skull masks and hoodies at a cemetery, raising placards with the messages, ‘Don’t they have enough bodies’, and ‘There are no patriots among the dead’, news site Vot Tak reported.

In Moscow, artist Anzhela Aganina wore a traditional Ukrainian shirt and lay severed blonde braids and flowers at her feet, according to SotaVision.

In Yekaterinburg, hundreds of Russians marched and chanted ‘No to war!’ the Telegram channel Avtozak Live reported.

Saturday’s figure grew from Friday, when the Associated Press reported that about 1,745 people were detained across 54 cities in Russia, with at least 957 in Moscow.

On Saturday alone, more than 325 protesters were detained across 30 Russian cities and towns, with nearly half of them in Moscow, according to OVD-Info, an independent Russian human rights group tracking arrests in opposition rallies.

Russia has made spontaneous mass demonstrations illegal.