About 100 members of the Russian community in Switzerland demonstrated this Sunday at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva against the partial mobilization declared by Russian President Vladimir Putin to extend the war in Ukraine.
According to Efe news agency, the demonstration was called by an anti-war movement in Ukraine, which brought together hundreds of protesters who, with posters in Russian and English, called for an end to the war and the arrest of the Russian president.
“Clearly, the mobilization will not change the course of the war in Ukraine. It will only prolong the conflict, increase the loss of life and economic damage.a statement from the organization said.
Some protesters held Ukrainian flags and others held the white, blue and red flag, which has become the symbol of the Russians opposing this conflict.
“Putin’s dying regime is poised to sacrifice an incalculable number of lives in Ukraine,” protest promoters say, warning that the number of troops mobilized for the war could reach a million.
However, according to a report released this Sunday by the civil rights organization OVD-Info, at least 821 people were detained in 34 cities on Saturday as a result of protests that broke out in Russia against the military mobilization announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Moscow was the city with the highest number of detainees, about 400, but people were also detained in Saint Petersburg (142 detainees), Novosibirsk (71), Irkutsk (20), Tomsk (19), Izhevsk (17), Ufa ( 16), among others.
The protests started after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilization to bolster armed forces after the recent setbacks in the war in Ukraine.
According to OVD-Info, more than 1,300 people were arrested on the first day of protest.
The military offensive launched by Russia on February 24 in Ukraine has already led to nearly 13 million people fleeing — more than six million displaced persons and nearly seven million to neighboring countries — according to the latest UN data, which describes this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the generality of the international community, which responded by sending weapons to Ukraine and Russia. imposing sanctions. in all sectors, from banking to energy and sports.
Source: DN
