Over 1100 have been arrested throughout pro-Navalny protests in St. Petersburg
Riot police clashed with protesters in Russia’s second largest city, St. Petersburg, on Sunday to demand the release of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
Thousands marched in columns through the city and sang “Down with the Tsar!” and occasional brawls broke out as protesters pushed back police trying to make arrests. Over 1,100 were arrested.
In protests across the country, police arrested more than 5,100 people, according to OVD-Info, a group that monitors political arrests.
The massive protests came despite efforts by the Russian authorities to stem the tide of demonstrations after tens of thousands gathered across the country last weekend. This was the largest and most widespread demonstration of discontent Russia had seen in years.
Despite threats of imprisonment, warnings to social media groups and tight police chains, the protests on Sunday again locked cities in Russia’s eleven time zones.
Navalny’s team quickly called another protest in Moscow on Tuesday as he faces a trial that could send him to prison for years.
The 44-year-old, an anti-corruption investigator and Putin’s most famous critic, was arrested on January 17 after his return from Germany. There he recovered for five months from nerve agent poisoning, which he accuses the Kremlin.
The Russian authorities have denied the allegations.
He was arrested for allegedly violating his probation requirements for failing to report to law enforcement meetings while he was recovering in Germany.
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