100s of protesters stage demonstrations against Putin in major Russian cities
Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets of major cities across Russia to express their dissent against President Vladimir Putin, urging him not to run for presidency in next year's presidential election.
The protesting rallies were held on Saturday in some 32 cities across the Russian Federation, including the capital Moscow.
The demonstrations were all organized by the UK-based Open Russia organization, which is run by the exiled former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a strong critic of the Kremlin.
According to the Russian Interior Ministry’s press service, some 250 protesters gathered for the "unauthorized" rally in the capital.
The rallies were held just three days after the Prosecutor General's office declared the organization "undesirable," effectively making it illegal for the group to operate inside Russia. It cited the protest attempts as the main reason behind the decision.
Protesters shouted a number of slogans against Putin and tried to present written appeals at city halls and presidential administration offices in their respective cities, which called for the Russian leader to step down from politics.
Reports say that at least 30 protesters were detained in St. Petersburg and 16 others were apprehended in Kemerovo. Campaign organizers in the cities of Izhevsk and Gorno-Altaysk were also arrested.
Putin came to power as the second president of Russia in 2000, a tenure that he held until 2008, after being reelected in 2004.
In 2008, during Dmitry Medvedev's administration, the presidential terms were extended from four years to six years. Putin took office as the fourth Russian president following the 2012 election.
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