Rallies defending the right to free assembly in several Russian cities were broken up by police on Sunday, and several leading human rights figures were arrested.

Several hundred people had gathered in Moscow's Triumfalnaya Square to protest the policies of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his predecessor and current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Rallies were also held in Yekaterinburg, Vladivostok, and the central Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk.

Among those detained were the head of the Memorial human rights group, Oleg Orlov, and executive director of the Movement for Human Rights, Lev Ponomarev. Police also arrested opposition leaders Boris Nemtsov, Eduard Limonov, and Ilya Yashin.

Ludmila Alexeeva, an 82-year-old dissident and co-founder of the Moscow Helsinki Group, was also arrested.

"On Sunday, members of the opposition tried to stage an unauthorized protest. Police were forced to arrest the most active participants who were brandishing placards and shouting anti-government slogans," Moscow police spokesman Viktor Biryukov said.

The activists were apparently released later on Sunday, but ordered to appear before a judge for violating laws regarding public gatherings, according to an opposition figure quoted by news agency AFP.

svs/AFP/AP

Editor: Darren Mara