Massive demonstrations are expected across Russia today as critics of Vladimir Putin head to the polls in a show of defiance against his regime.
Known as “Noon Against Putin”, Russian citizens frustrated with the leader’s rule are being called to head to the voting booths all at the same time: Midday, 17 March, or 9am UK time.
“We want this dark time to end. We want a clear, normal future,” the campaign’s website says. “But we, citizens of our country, with our pain and our hope, are not noticeable either to the authorities or to each other.
“At noon on Sunday, 17 March, the last day of voting, when we come to the polling stations, we will show others and see for ourselves that there are many of us . We can become a force that cannot be hidden behind drawn percentages.”
It comes as Russia accused Ukraine of dropping a shell from a drone onto a polling station in the Russian-controlled region of Zaporizhzhia.
The Russian foreign ministry accused Kyiv of increasing “terrorist activities” during the Putin’s sham election to attract more aid and weapons from the West.
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Call for protests as Russian sham election enters day 3
Critics of president Vladimir Putin have called for protests at Russian polling stations on the final day of the sham presidential elections.
There have been sporadic acts of protests in the first two days of the polls, with a spate of arrests of Russians accused of pouring dye into ballot boxes.
Alexei Navalny, Kremlin critic and opposition leader, before his death had called on Russians to stage protests on Sunday. Now, his widow Yulia Navalnaya, has reiterated his call.
She called for protesters to spoil ballots by writing “Navalny” on them or vote for candidates instead of Mr Putin, AFP reported
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar17 March 2024 08:00
Zelensky says Ukraine strikes reveal Russian military ‘vulnerabilities’
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said recent successful Ukraine drone strikes on Russian targets revealed vulnerabilities in the Russian war machine.
Ukraine has struck multiple oil refineries in Russia this week, reaching targets in Krasnodar, Samara, Ryazan, Kaluga, Nizhny Novgorod, and Leningrad.
“These weeks have demonstrated to many that the Russian war machine has vulnerabilities that we can reach with our weapons,” Mr Zelensky said in his evening address.
“I am grateful to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine, and Defence Intelligence for their new Ukrainian long-range capability.
“What our own drones are capable of is a true Ukrainian long-range capability. Ukraine will now always have a strike force in the sky,” he added.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar17 March 2024 07:30
Putin’s party hit by cyberattack as armed Russian troops oversee voters in occupied Ukraine
United Russia, for which Vladimir Putin acts as its de facto ruler but is not representing in these elections, claimed it faced a widespread denial of service attack – a form of cyberattack aimed at paralysing web traffic – and had suspended non-essential services to repel it.
State news agency RIA quoted a senior telecoms official as blaming the cyberattacks on Ukraine and Western countries. They did not provide evidence to substantiate this claim.
Tom Watling17 March 2024 07:00
Noon Against Putin: Alexei Navalny’s final plan to disrupt Russia’s sham elections
Russian citizens will spend this weekend casting their vote for their next president, even though the result has already been decided.
No amount of votes against him can prevent his victory, say the Russian dissident community, since the system is rigged and those that could challenge him have either been killed, imprisoned or exiled.
Tom Watling17 March 2024 06:30
Russia says Ukrainian shelling killed two in a border city
Ukrainian shelling of the Russian city of Belgorod killed two people, officials said Saturday, while Russia claimed to have thwarted a new attempt by saboteurs to cross the border.
Saturday’s attacks occurred as Russians entered the second day of voting in a presidential election that is all but certain to extend Vladimir Putin’s rule by another six years after he crushed dissent.
A man and a woman died in the attack and three other people were wounded, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said. It was the latest in exchanges of long-range missile and rocket fire in Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar17 March 2024 06:00
In pics: People vote for Russia elections
A man votes in Russia’s presidential election in the city of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk on far eastern Sakhalin Island
(AFP via Getty Images)
People holding placards line up to vote at the Consulate General of the Russian Federation
(Getty Images)
Anti-Putin protestors rally at the Consulate General of the Russian Federation
(Getty Images)
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar17 March 2024 05:30
Yes, the Russian election is rigged – but there could still be surprises for Putin
With the results of the vote already known in advance, it may be tempting to cast a blind eye to the proceedings, writes Mary Dejevsky. But after the death of Alexei Navalny, and uncertainty around Ukraine, things may not be quite as predictable as they seem…
Tom Watling17 March 2024 05:30
This re-election of Putin is a shameless charade and nothing to do with voters’ empowerment
Editorial: With little doubt over the ‘winner’ of this weekend’s Russian presidential election, the West should take heart that Putin finds himself isolated – and as his country recedes into Stalinism, so too does its economic prospects. His impoverishing of the Russian people will prove his undoing
Tom Watling17 March 2024 04:30
One dead as Ukraine drone hits Russia’s Slavyansk refinery
One person died as fire broke out after Ukraine launched several drones at the Slavyansk oil refinery in Russia’s Krasnodar region, official said on Sunday.
“The drones were neutralised, but a fire broke out as a result of the fall of one of the devices,” the operational headquarters of the region in southern Russia said.
The fire was extinguished and there were no casualties as a result of the fire itself, the administration said. Preliminary information indicated, however, one person had died of a heart attack, it added.
Roman Siniagovskyi, head of the Slavyansk administrative district, said on Telegram that the refinery workers were evacuated and there was no threat to nearby populated areas from the incident.
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar17 March 2024 04:00
Putin’s opposition know his election is a sham. They have a plan for change
Starting with a call for citizens to head to the polls en masse at noon on Sunday – in a symbolic show of dissent – Russia’s opposition begins a new chapter in the wake of the death of Putin’s fiercest critic Alexei Navalny, writes Tom Watling
Tom Watling17 March 2024 03:30