Authorities break up opposition rally in Russia

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Russian authorities on Saturday broke up an opposition rally in a central Russian city, detaining hundreds of activists, organizers said. It was the second major anti-government protest by liberal and leftist forces in recent months to be broken up by police. Authorities had not given permission for the rally, dubbed the March of Those Who Disagree, in a central square in Nizhny Novgorod, instead allowing a gathering far from the city center and deploying hundreds of riot police in full gear to cordon off the square. Organizer Natalya Morar said several hundred protesters nevertheless managed to hold a short rally in the vicinity of the square until police dragged them into detention buses and took them to police stations. Morar said several dozen journalists, including foreign reporters, were among those detained.