Baton-wielding riot police broke up an anti-government demonstration in Moscow on Monday and arrested scores of protesters after detaining Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny as he tried to leave his home. Several thousand protesters, including many young people, crowded central Moscow at Navalny's behest chanting "Russia without Putin" and "Russia will be free". The Kremlin has repeatedly dismissed those allegations and accused Navalny of trying irresponsibly to whip up unrest. Dozens of protesters were also detained at a similar demonstration in St Petersburg, a Reuters witness said. A video he made accusing Medvedev, a Putin ally, of living far beyond his means has garnered over 22 million online views to date.

Source: The Star June 12, 2017 13:41 UTC