Ukraine invasion: Police detain anti-war protestors across Russia

Russian media and rights groups say police in various parts of Russia have detained protesters who took to the streets with antiwar slogans or flowers to mark the first anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

At least eight people were detained Friday after taking flowers to a monument to victims of political repression in Yekaterinburg, Russia’s fourth-largest city, according to the OVD-Info legal aid group, which tracks political arrests.

It said two people were detained in St. Petersburg after bringing flowers to a monument honoring Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko.

In Siberia, five people were detained in the city of Barnaul, including a man who picketed on a central square with a placard reading “Stop being silent,” the Sibir.Realii news outlet said. It said a woman in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur was detained for protesting with a banner saying: “We’re mourning. Forgive us, we screwed up our country.”

Russians all across the country actively protested against the war in Ukraine during the first week of the invasion.

Large rallies quickly fizzled after thousands were detained, but single-person protests — and detentions — persisted throughout the year.