Anti-War Protests Hits Putin's Russia

On Wednesday, September 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a 'partial mobilisation' of some 300,000 reservists with immediate effect in the wake of setbacks suffered by the Russian military in its raging conflict with Ukraine.

As a result, the anti-war opposition group Vesna called for widespread protests.

Vesna called its action 'No to mogilisation -- a play on words, because mogila in Russian means grave.

Scores of arrests were reported from Moscow and St Petersburg, Putin's home city.

The Moscow prosecutor's office on Wednesday warned that calls on the Internet to join unauthorised street protests, or participation in them, could incur up to 15 years in jail.

IMAGE: Russian police officers detain a person during an unsanctioned protest. All Photographs: Reuters

IMAGE: One more protestor being detained.

IMAGE: And one more... The prosecutor's office has warned of strict action against uncalled protests.

IMAGE: Dozens of protestors were held in Irkutsk and other Siberian cities, and Yekaterinburg too.

IMAGE: A women protestor being held by the police.

IMAGE: The Russian human rights group OVD-Info put the total arrests at more than 1,300.

IMAGE: People line up during an unsanctioned rally.

IMAGE: Police maintain a strict vigil on the streets.

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com