Human Rights Watch has issued a stern warning to Russia over the tactics used by police against opposition protestors on Sunday at the ‘March of a Million’ protest against Putin’s return.  Whilst acknowledging that in some cases protestors were aggressive towards police officers, the NGO’s account also suggests that a number of police tactics (such the creation of a bottleneck designed to stymy the progress of protestors, the indiscriminate use of tear gas and other weapons) were unacceptable.  Below is just part of their report, which includes the testimony of participants:

Several activists interviewed by Human Rights Watch, including two who were themselves detained, said that riot police in full gear dragged protesters by their arms and feet, twisted their arms, and stomped on people who had fallen to the ground. Witnesses also reported that some people were bleeding from being hit or dragged by police along the asphalt and that at least three demonstrators had to be hospitalized after being released from police precincts later in the evening.