At Least 1,400 Detained At Anti-War Protests Across Russia As 100,000 Rally For Peace In Berlin

Russians in several cities, including Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Samara, have taken to the streets again to protest Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Demonstrators chanting “No to war!" marched in city centers on February 27.

According to OVD-Info, a nonprofit that monitors police arrests nationwide, by nightfall police had detained more than 1,400 people at anti-war protests that occurred in 45 Russian cities.

• RFE/RL

Thousands have taken to the streets in countries around the world in support of Ukraine, which is facing the fourth day of an all-out invasion by Russia forces.

That brought the total number detained in Russia for protesting the country's war on Ukraine to more than 4,500 people, OVD-Info said on its website, which lists the names of the detainees.

Protests against the invasion have continued for four days in a row, despite police swiftly moving to detain hundreds of people each day.

In St. Petersburg, where dozens gathered in the city center peacefully, police in riot gear grabbed protesters and dragged some to police vans.

In Berlin, more than 100,000 people took to the streets to decry Russia's war against Ukraine. People packed the boulevard between the Brandenburg Gate and the Victory Column waving Ukrainian flags and holding signs reading "Stop the war," "Stop all trade with Putin now," and "Solidarity with Ukraine."

An alliance of trade unions, churches, environmental organizations, and peace groups had called for the demonstration.

Authorities in the city estimated that at least 100,000 people participated. The number far exceeded the organizers' hopes that at least 20,000 protesters would turn out.

Thousands of people rallied on February 26 in cities from Sydney to Washington, and more anti-war protest were planned to take place on February 27.

With reporting by AP and dpa