Mass protests rock Russian Far East city again
Source: AP
By YULIA KHOROVENKOVA and DARIA LITVINOVA
KHABAROVSK, Russia (AP) — Mass rallies rocked the Russian Far East city of Khabarovsk again on Saturday, as tens of thousands took to the streets to protest the arrest of the region’s governor on charges of involvement in multiple murders.
Local media estimated the rally in the city 3,800 miles east of Moscow drew 15,000 to 50,000 people. Hundreds of people have rallied in the city center every day this week against the arrest of Sergei Furgal, reflecting widespread anger over the arrest of the popular governor and a simmering discontent with the Kremlin’s policies.
Furgal, the Khabarovsk region governor, was arrested on July 9 and flown to Moscow where he was put in jail for two months. Russia’s Investigative Committee says he is suspected of involvement in several murders of businessmen in 2004 and 2005.
Furgal has denied the charges, which relate to his time as a businessman with interests ranging from imports of consumer goods to timber and metals. Khabarovsk residents dismissed the charges against him as unsubstantiated and denounced the Kremlin for targeting a governor they elected.
People hold posters reading "Freedom for Sergei Furgal, I'm, we are Sergei Furgal, "Give us Furgal back," "Call Furgal home" during an unsanctioned protest in support of Furgal, the governor of the Khabarovsk region, who was interrogated ordered held in jail for two months, in Khabarovsk, 6,100 kilometers (3,800 miles) east of Moscow, Russia, Saturday, July 18, 2020. Thousands of demonstrators in the Russian Far East city of Khabarovsk gather to protest against the arrest of the region's governor on charges of involvement in multiple murders. (AP Photo/Igor Volkov)
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