Moscow police detained three journalists at a demonstration in Moscow in support of jailed Ukrainian pilot Nadiya (Nadezhda) Savchenko, Slon.ru reported, citing the police monitoring group OVDInfo reported.
Philip Kireev, a freelance photo-correspondent, and Andrei Novichkov, journalist of Grani.ru, were detained on Lyubanka Square in front of FSB headquarters and taken to the Kitai-Gorod District police station. OVDInfo says it is checking reports that Kireev was beaten.
Translation: This is how things are for me now )
Activist Vera Lavreshina was detained along with him, and there was no contact with the detainees for some time.
Also detained was Anastasiya Ringis, a journalist from Ukrainska Pravda, although she was released within a few hours.
Kireev was not heard from for 3 hours but has tweeted just now:
Translation: Me, Belkin and Novichkov were released from the police precinct; four activists remain behind bars. We talked with the police from E Center, on the whole everything is ok )
"E Center" is the Anti-Extremism Center of the Federal Security Service (FSB) which is increasingly used to detain and investigate demonstrators of any kind.
Kireev said he was not beaten, and did not know where the story came from.
Translation: It's a lie. No one beat me.
Translation: Belkin had all his photos erased from his flash card.
Translation: Novichkov and I also had our flash cards erased but I will upload the photos soon ; )
-- Catherine A. Fitzpatrick