In a statement, regional police announced that, with assistance from the Russian National Guard, they arrested three members of a musical group at a club in Nizhny Novgorod. They are said to have distributed Nazi symbols, which usually results in a fine or short imprisonment. In addition to the arrests, police also seized T-shirts and books with banned symbols.
However, the group’s manager claims that they are ancient Slavic symbols, as she told the Russian news agency TASS. Images of the concert circulating on social media show how the police enter the hall and force those present to lie on the ground, sometimes with violence.
Russia’s cultural scene has been under increasing pressure from authorities since Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine more than two years ago.
