Journalists who filmed protest by mobilised soldiers' wives detained in Moscow – photo, video

Journalists who were covering a demonstration held by The Way Home, a group of mobilised soldiers’ wives, have been detained by the police in Manezhnaya Square in Moscow.

Source: Latvia-based Russian independent news outlet Meduza, with reference to the Telegram channels Sota and SotaVision; media project Ostorozhno Novosti; human rights portal OVD-Info; Sirena (Siren), an independent Russian news outlet focusing on the war in Ukraine; Novaya Gazeta Europe

Details: Media outlets posted videos of several police officers leading male journalists wearing vests marked "Press" to a police van.

"Basically all the male journalists were detained," Sota claims.

Sirena reported that the police detained all the journalists who had filmed people laying flowers at the Eternal Flame war memorial.

According to the Ostorozhno Novosti Telegram channel, more than 25 people were bundled into the police van, most of them journalists. The channel reported that staff from Ostorozno Novosti, Sota.Vision, Kommersant, France Press and Spiegel were detained, as well as human rights activists from the movement For Human Rights.

OVD-Info reports that 27 people were detained, at least one of whom was a protester. They were taken to the Kitai-gorod district police station.

According to human rights activists, the police detained seven more journalists who were covering a later protest outside Vladimir Putin's election headquarters in Pokrovka. They were taken to the Basmanny Department for Internal Affairs. Among the detainees was Andrei Zaikov, who works for Japanese TV company Fuji.

Shortly afterwards, the detained journalists were released from the Kitai-gorod police station.

According to Novaya Gazeta Europe, women and men wearing white headscarves had gathered in the centre of Moscow to mark the 500th day since mobilisation was announced in the Russian Federation.

Family members of those sent to fight against Ukraine arrange flower-laying events every Saturday, but this week, families from the Russian capital had urged their compatriots to join them from the regions. The initiative was also supported by "opposition politicians". As a result, on 3 February, many more people had gathered in the Alexander Garden, where the Eternal Flame is situated, than usual. After the rally, the protesters headed for Vladimir Putin's election headquarters.

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