Russian Police: Moscow Riots Were Flared by Extremists

Officers inspect damages inflicted in the Biryulyovo riots. Photo by RIA Novosti.

The riots in southern Moscow disctrict of Biryulyovo were triggered by extremist provokers, according to senior Russian police officials.

The violent clashes - the largest for years in the Russian capital - led to dozens of people, including at least 6 police officers being injured.

Russian Minister of Interior Vladimir Kolokoltsev and Moscow police chief Anatoliy Yakunin both called the instigators "extremists."

In a RIA Novosti video, an injured riot police commander described a scene of flying bottles and rocks, with many protesters drinking.

People started gathering peacefully on Saturday in protest against the stab murder of a 25-year-old local resident.

But things turned violent and xenophobic Sunday, as ralliers smashed shop windows, chanting "Russia for the Russians" and "White Power," reports the BBC.

The murdered young man was an ethnic Russian, while video footage of the killer, distributed by police, led many to believe that he was of Caucasian or Central Asian origin.

Sunday rioters chanted slogans against immigrants and targeted trade sites known to employ migrant workers.

Interior Minister Kolokoltsev vowed that both the killer and the perpetrators of acts of vandalism will be brought to justice.

Some 400 people were detained in the course of Sunday night, and 72 of them were kept under arrest to face charges.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!