Hundreds of demonstrators across Russia were arrested on Sunday during protests against the war in Ukraine.
In the center of Moscow, security forces had positioned themselves at noon with a large contingent.
Mass arrests of the people gathered there began on the Manegen Square by the Kremlin and in the surrounding streets.
The civil rights advocates from OWD-Info spoke of at least 200 arrests.
Journalists who were present were then expelled from Manegenplatz and the square was largely cordoned off.
However, the march through the capital continued amid shouts of “No to war”.
In addition to the protests, a rally by supporters of Russia's "military special operation" in Ukraine also took place in Moscow on Sunday: A motorcade marched through the city center with Russian flags, some of the vehicles had the "Z" stuck to them, which also symbolizes Russian military vehicles in Ukraine marks.
Meanwhile, protests against the war were also reported from many other Russian cities, including Saint Petersburg, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Arkhangelsk Nizhny Novgorod and Novosibirsk.
There were reports of arrests from all cities, including journalists.
According to local media, more than 200 people were also arrested in Novosibirsk.
Footage showed a protest march with dozens of demonstrators chanting "No to war," as well as the arrest of a journalist wearing a yellow "press" vest.
In a video from Yekaterinburg, police officers beat a demonstrator with batons, and in Saint Petersburg security forces used electric batons against the demonstrators.
There and in Arkhangelsk, pictures showed children among those arrested.
In the past few days, Russian security forces had already cracked down on demonstrators who had spoken out against the war, which is not officially considered a war in Russia.
OWD-Info reported on Sunday afternoon that anti-war protests had resulted in more than 2,000 arrests in 44 cities in Russia since the war began on February 24;
the exact number increased hourly.