MOSCOW — Police detained dozens of anti-gay protesters and gay rights activists during a gay pride rally in central Moscow on Saturday.
The detainees included members of a nationalist organization who threw tomatoes at participants and had prepared to shoot a paintball gun, RIA Novosti reported.
Saturday’s protest was one of the few gay rights events sanctioned by authorities, reported the Associated Press. In recent years, several attempts to hold gay pride marches in Moscow and other Russian cities have been blocked by police and Russian Orthodox Church activists.
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Earlier this week, members of the Arkhangelsk Regional Assembly approved a measure to “protect the morals and health of children.”
The law bans public actions aimed at the so-called promotion of homosexuality directed towards minors, and all activities aimed at “promoting homosexuality” in public places, such as gay pride.
