Bogdan Frolov14:26, 08.11.26

According to eyewitnesses, security forces beat teenagers, threatened them, and forbade them from drinking water and using the toilet.

On the evening of November 7, security forces conducted a large-scale raid in Kitay-gorod in central Moscow , detaining several hundred people, including minors. Detainees and witnesses report beatings, threats, summonses, and offers to sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense.

According to eyewitnesses, more than ten police cars drove up to Gorka Park. Police officers picked up people right from the park, near bars, at Chistye Stavye, and even on the way to a concert, writes Novaya Gazeta Europa . One of the girls said that she and her friends were detained while filming a video for TikTok.

According to the released, the security forces were mainly interested in young people in informal clothes – even a cap with a British flag could be a reason for detention.

Detainees recounted their abuse. One teenager said he was beaten in the area of ​​his only kidney, another 15-year-old said a police officer pushed him against a wall and hit him after demanding to see his backpack. He also said another detainee next to him was beaten so badly that he started vomiting, but no help was provided.

Young people complain that they were forbidden to drink water and use the toilet. One girl, according to her, was threatened by security forces to “smash her phone along with her face” for trying to film what was happening on the bus.

Those released from Tagansky State University reported that adult detainees were handed summonses to the military registration and enlistment office, including students with deferment. One of the detainees said that right in the van, everyone over 18 was persistently offered to sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense. It is unknown whether anyone agreed.

According to media reports, at least 17 teenagers received administrative reports for drinking alcohol in a public place. Reports were also drawn up for appearing intoxicated and disobeying the police.

The Russian Interior Ministry called the raid “preventive measures” – in particular, to combat drinking alcohol in public places. As the media notes, similar mass detentions in Kitay-gorod have been taking place since the summer.

(C)UNIAN 2026