Wives of Russian soldiers stage another protest near Kremlin, as police detain scores of journalists
A week-long protest of the wives of mobilized Russian soldiers, The Way Home, began in the center of Moscow on Feb. 3 with the demand that authorities return the men from the war of aggression against Ukraine, the Russian Telegram news channel SOTA reports.
The movement of wives of mobilized soldiers, the Anti-Corruption Foundation, and opposition politician Maxim Katz called for participation in the rally, but most of the crowd was made up of journalists.
The police detained almost all male journalists, including those from the Russian media outlets Ostorozhno Novosti, Sota.Vision, Kommersant, as well as France Press and Der Spiegel.
In addition, security forces detained human rights activists, Sota reported.
A total of 27 people were detained near the Kremlin, most of them journalists. All detainees were taken to the Kitay-Gorod police department.
The wives of those mobilized also wrote an "order" asking for their husbands' demobilization.
Read also: UK intel describes how Kremlin is trying to suppress protests by wives of Russian military personnel
The Moscow Prosecutor's Office warned of liability for participating in the protests, noting that they were not coordinated with local authorities.
The department's Telegram channel reports that information calling for participation in a public rally in the center of the capital was posted on social media.
The wives of Russian soldiers held the first public street protest in Moscow after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Nov. 7.
British intelligence had previously reported that the prolonged stay of Russian soldiers at the front without the possibility of rotation was perceived by them and their relatives as unacceptable.
Intelligence officials note that since February 2022, examples of online appeals from Russian wives and mothers protesting the conditions of their relatives' service have been appearing on social media every day.
In another report, British intelligence also noted that the Russian authorities are trying to suppress public protests by the wives of Russian military personnel, including by discrediting them online.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
