Kasparov Seized By Police Over Moscow Protest

RUSSIAN chess champ turned political leader Garry Kasparov was arrested by riot police yesterday for his part in organising a banned protest march in central Moscow.

The March of Discontent was called by opposition party, Other Russia, to protest against president Vladimir Putin.

Thousands of police, many of them in helmets and wielding truncheons, were at the scene in Pushkin Square, about half a mile from the Kremlin.

They pounced on protesters bundling them into vans. Many went quietly, but some struggled and were forced into police vehicles by officers holding truncheons to their necks.

Former world chess champion Kasparov was seen inside apolice van, waving and smiling to journalists clustered outside on the edge of the square. He was later released by a Moscow court. Police declared the protest illegal after Moscow city authorities refused permission on the grounds that pro-Kremlin youth activists had already booked the venue for their own rally.

(c) 2007 Sunday Mercury; Birmingham (UK). Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.