Russians hold day of protests against election fraud
Protests against election fraud are beginning in Russia, the first in a planned wave of nationwide demonstrations testing Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his party, The Associated Press reported.
Protest leaders predict Saturday will bring the largest show of public anger in the country since the collapse of the Soviet Union 20 years ago.
The centerpiece is to be a massive rally in Moscow, where more than 30,000 people are expected. But protests have been called for more than 70 other cities in the sprawling country.
Several hundred people protested in the Pacific port city of Vladivostok, denouncing the widespread fraud reported in last Sunday's parliamentary election. Police stayed to the sidelines and no arrests were reported.
But the Interfax news agency says about 25 people were arrested in the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk at a flash-mob protest.