Police Arrested Over 1,000 Protesters In Moscow - Watchdog

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th January, 2021) More than 1,000 protesters were arrested at an unauthorized rally in Moscow on Saturday, according to the early estimates of the city's ombudswoman.

"According to preliminary estimates, more than 1,000 people were arrested. The Moscow ombudswoman will request additional information," a statement on Tatyana Potyayeva's website read.

The vast majority of those detained were in their 20s.

Observers from the rights watchdog's office started reporting an increasing number of arrests in the second half of the afternoon when protesters clashed with riot police.

Yulia Ivanova, a senior aide to the head of Moscow's Investigative Department, told Sputnik that four criminal cases were opened against protesters on charges of assaulting a police officer. Four officers were injured. One of them was run over by a car and another one was pepper sprayed in the face.