Protests in Moscow

On July 17, Russians took to a protest rally in Moscow. They protested against independent candidates being barred from the Moscow City Duma elections. The police brutally dispersed the protesters – security forces pushed people, threw them to the ground, beat them with batons and kicked them, and then forcibly dragged them into police vans.

Over 25 thousand people gathered for the "Let Them Go" rally on September 29. They called for the release of people held in prisons or pre-trial detention centres after being detained at the rallies in July-August. The rally on September 29 was authorised by the authorities. All participants had to pass through metal detector frames with built-in cameras.