Russia arrest over 2700 people for demanding Navalny's release

Russian police detained more than 2,700 people in protests across Russia by supporters of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny.Protests are taking place in many Russian cities, from Siberia and Russia's far east to St Petersberg and Moscow's capital, in the essential show of public dissent in Russia in years."My Russia is in prison!" a dozen demonstrators gathered in Vladivostok chanted, according to images published by the local branch of the house of the Russian opposition leader."There are few characters this time because the police and the riot police had checked the place in advance," 25-year-old protester Andrei said. "But as you can see, no one is afraid." Other chants targeted Russian President Vladimir Putin.According to a monitoring group, over 1,000 were detained by police over Russia's 11 time zones. The largest number of arrests came in Moscow, AFP reported.Meanwhile, prominent associates of Navalny have been detailed along with opposition journalists, and in St. Petersburg, barriers have been erected to deter protesters.Navalny's arrest on January 17 sparked nationwide protests last week in about 100 cities, with nearly 4,000 people reportedly arrested.His arrest came as he tried to enter the country after flying back from Germany, where he had spent five months recovering from nerve-agent poisoning.Lubyanka SquareSunday's demonstration in Moscow was designed for Lubyanka Square, where the Federal Security Service that Navalny claims committed the poisoning is headquartered. But due to a huge police presence, it was relocated to another public square a mile away.Last week's protests were the largest and most popular in many years, and powers aim to prevent a repeat.Police managed a set of raids this week at homes and offices of Navalny's family, friends, and anti-corruption organization.His brother Oleg, top aide Lyubov Sobol and three other people were put under two-month traffic arrest on Friday as part of a criminal probe into alleged ruins of coronavirus regulations during last weekend's protests.