Massive protests erupted in Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg as Russians voice opposition to war in Ukraine
- Massive protests erupted in Russian President Vladimir Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg.
- Anti-war demonstrations came after Putin announced a Russian invasion of Ukraine on Thursday.
Massive protests erupted on Thursday in Russian President Vladimir Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg, as people voiced their opposition to the invasion of Ukraine.
Videos posted to Twitter show a sea of people gathered in a section of St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, chanting and holding signs to object to Russia's offensive in Ukraine.
NEXTA, a Belarusian media channel on the social network Telegram, posted a video showing an enormous bloc of people outside what appeared to be a Russian government building with busses lining the street adjacent to the protest.
A photo posted to Twitter by Eilish Hart, a news editor at Russian outlet Meduza, showed a line of police in riot gear in the city's Palace Square.
Russian government forces have threatened to arrest anti-war protesters, who took to the streets after Putin announced military action against Ukraine on Thursday.
Russia's Investigative Committee warned citizens in a statement not to take part in the "unauthorized" protests "associated with the tense foreign political situation."
As of 10 p.m. local time in St. Petersburg, protest-monitoring media group OVD-Info reported that over 1,400 people were detained in 51 cities — including the capital city of Moscow.
At least 378 of those individuals were detained in St. Petersburg, according to OVD-Info.
Another video posted to Twitter by NEXTA shows police detaining several protesters.
Putin was born in St. Petersburg — formerly called Leningrad — in 1952.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.