- 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,
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.
—NEXTA (@nexta_tv) February 24, 2022
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.
—Eilish Hart (@EilishHart) February 24, 2022
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.
—NEXTA (@nexta_tv) February 24, 2022
Putin was born in St. Petersburg — formerly called Leningrad — in 1952.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.