
Footage has emerged of Russian police officers throwing civilians to the ground and beating them, during anti-corruption protests over Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, on Sunday.

Video filmed at the protests in Moscow, which were attended by about 8,000 people, shows a group of ten Russian police officers dressed in SWAT gear carrying a single protester through the streets while others were being thrown to the ground.

British student Gregory 'Grisha' Hill, believed to be 17, was reportedly one of the victims of violence - his mother claims he was 'beaten in the ribs and groin' by police as he was detained at the Moscow protests.

A court on Monday ordered Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to spend 15 days in jail and fined him 20,000 roubles ($352.20, £280) for his role in organising the protests and for disobeying a police officer.

Russian police officers were filmed getting violent with civilians during anti-corruption protests over Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Sunday.

In video footage from the protests in Moscow, which were attended by about 8,000 people, a group of ten Russian police officers dressed in SWAT gear were seen trowing protesters to the grownd

Hundreds of Russians, including Navalny, were arrested on Sunday as thousands defied bans to stage anti-corruption protests across the country.

Russian police said about 500 people were arrested, while human rights groups said 1,000 were taken into custody.

Navalny called for the marches after publishing a detailed report this month accusing Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev of controlling a property empire through a shadowy network of nonprofit organisations.

His report has been viewed over 11 million times on YouTube but so far Medvedev has made no comment on the claims.

The Kremlin has dismissed the opposition as a Westernised urban elite disconnected from the issues faced by the poor in Russia's far-flung regions, but Sunday's protests included demonstrations in the areas which typically produce a high vote for President Vladimir Putin, from Siberia's Chita to Dagestan's Makhachkala.

At one point in the video, about ten police officers appear to gather around one civilian, who was believed to be unarmed during the protests

Hundreds of Russians were arrested on Sunday as thousands defied bans to stage anti-corruption protests across the country.

British student Gregory 'Grisha' Hill, believed to be 17, was reportedly one of the victims of police violence - his mother claims he was 'beaten in the ribs and groin' by police as he was detained at the Moscow protests

Meanwhile, Medvedev's only comment as Russia saw the largest protests since 2012 in cities from the Baltic to the Pacific was to post on Instagram a message saying his day was 'not bad - I went skiing'. In the comment on a photo he posted two weeks ago, he added a smiling emoji - with a tongue sticking out.

British student Hill's family are planning to make complaints to the police and British embassy, it was reported in Moscow.

'Grisha has bruises because one policeman pushed his head against the ground, and the second policeman was beating him in his ribs and groin,' wrote his mother Elena, an international school teacher, on Facebook.

Grisha's mother, Elena Hill, hit back at suggestions that opposition leader Alexei Navalny had 'used' children to boost numbers at the anti-corruption rally

'I am amazed by the comments from mayor's office that the police were doing their job correctly and provided safety in the crowd. This 'accuracy' I can see in Grisha's face.'

The student - who studies at a private school in Moscow - was detained after failing to show police his passport or identity documents, it is believed.

He was told: 'You must carry them with you.' He was said to have replied: 'No, I must not.'

His mother hit back at suggestions that opposition leader Alexei Navalny had 'used' children to boost numbers at the anti-corruption rally.

'Nobody used children,' she replied. 'They can go wherever they want if it is not against the Constitution.'

She said: 'He called me and calmly said that he was put into a prison truck and brought to police station. I was not even afraid.

'They brought about 25 people in that police truck, they separated underage from adults and began to release those with documents

Graduate physics student Olga Lozina, who's in her mid-20s, was hauled away by six burly police officers during the protests as she was on a walk with her family.

Lozina said that she had been held and thrown into a cell-on-wheels (avtozak) as she went for a walk in central Moscow with her mother and sisters.

Olga Lozina, who's in her mid-20s, was among the more than 900 detained in Moscow on Sunday during protests over corruption allegations involving Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

Meanwhile, Medvedev's only comment as Russia saw the largest protests since 2012 in cities from the Baltic to the Pacific was to post on Instagram a message saying his day was 'not bad - I went skiing'. Pictured above, a file photo of Medvedev skiing

Progress Party leader Alexei Navalny was escorted to a court room in Moscow, Russia, on Monday, a day after being detained at a major opposition rally

'We were on way back home, walking from McDonald's at Pushkinskaya square to catch a train at Belorusskaya tube station,' she said. 'Suddenly OMON soldiers jumped out of nowhere, starting to catch people.'

Shocked by her ordeal, she said: 'I wish they said why they did it, but I didn't even had a split second to do so as they grabbed me by arms and legs, and carried into avtozak.

'It wasn't too rough, I'd even say they carried me correctly - if you can use this word at all in this situation.

Lozina said that she had been held and thrown into a cell-on-wheels (avtozak) as she went for a walk in central Moscow with her mother and sisters

'If they were to explain just why they were detaining me, I would have walked myself. But they didn't.

'They threw us into avtozak, it was really hot and still inside. There were 32 people were inside one avtozak. When they delivered us to police station, they didn't let us go out for an hour.'

She said both her sisters and her 'elderly mother' were also detained.

The Kremlin has accused the organizers of anti-corruption protests in Russia of provoking violence.

President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the Kremlin respects the right to protest but dismissed Sunday's demonstrations as unlawful. He lashed out at unnamed organizers for 'consciously misleading people' and encouraging them to come.

The German government, however, has criticized the arrest of hundreds of opposition protesters in Moscow and other Russian cities.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert has urged Russia to respect human rights, which he described as being 'of great importance for Russian democracy.'

Separately, the German government criticized the mass arrest of protesters in Belarus.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer said the arrests were a 'setback' compared to positive developments seen in Belarus over recent months.

A court on Monday fined Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny 20,000 roubles ($352.20, £280) for his role in organising the protests

The same court was due, later on Monday, to consider a separate charge against him of disobeying a police officer. If found guilty, he could be jailed for 15 days

Navalny, pictured right with his lawyer, Olga Mikhailova, spoke in court on Monday after being fined. The Kremlin has lashed out at protest organizers, blaming them for putting lives at risk by inviting people to unsanctioned demonstrations

Navalny was one of hundreds of protesters detained in Russia on Sunday. He was picked up by police (pictured above) whiule walking to the protest

The European Union is calling on Russian authorities to release demonstrators detained during a series of protests across the country on Sunday.

Russia's opposition staged dozens of protests on Sunday and hundreds were arrested - including Alexei Navalny, the anti-corruption campaigner who is President Vladimir Putin's most prominent critic.

The EU's foreign policy arm said in a statement early Monday that police operations 'prevented the exercise of basic freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly - which are fundamental rights enshrined in the Russian constitution.'

It called on Russia to abide fully by its international commitments to uphold those rights 'and to release without delay the peaceful demonstrators that have been detained.'

The United States, too, criticised Moscow on for arresting hundreds of people demonstrating against corruption, calling the move an 'affront' to democracy.

'The United States strongly condemns the detention of hundreds of peaceful protesters throughout Russia,' acting State Department spokesman Mark Toner said in a statement.

'Detaining peaceful protesters, human rights observers, and journalists is an affront to core democratic values.'

Toner said the United States was 'troubled' by the arrest of Navalny, who has announced plans to run for president in the 2018 election and published a detailed report this month accusing Medvedev of controlling a property empire through a shadowy network of nonprofit organizations.

Hundreds of Russians including Progress Party leader Alexei Navalny were arrested on Sunday as thousands defied bans to stage anti-corruption protests across the country

Navalny called for the marches after accusing Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev of controlling a property empire through a shadowy network of nonprofit organisations

Sunday's march in Moscow was one of the biggest unauthorised demonstrations in recent years, with police putting turnout at 8,000 people

Police bundled Navalny (not pictured) into a minibus as he was walking to the protest. Pictured: An activist being led away

Police said about 500 people had been arrested in Moscow, while OVD-Info, a website that monitors the detention of activists, said at least 700 had been detained

Alexei Navalny (pictured before his arrest) walks in downtown Moscow, Russia, Sunday, as thousands took to the streets to protest Medvedev

'The United States will monitor this situation, and we call on the government of Russia to immediately release all peaceful protesters,' Toner said.

'The Russian people, like people everywhere, deserve a government that supports an open marketplace of ideas, transparent and accountable governance, equal treatment under the law, and the ability to exercise their rights without fear of retribution.'

The corruption claims allege that Medvedev controls a vast £1billion property empire including yachts and vineyards via a complex chain or charitable and surrogate owners.

Navalny claimed that billionaire Alisher Usmanov, the Arsenal FC shareholder, 'gave an extremely expensive mansion in Rublevka to a Medvedev-linked fund'.

'We are well aware of what such a gift means: it is a bribe,' Navalny said, claiming that Usmanov gifted Medvedev £69million.

'There is no other explanation why the oligarch gives someone a mansion worth 5 billion roubles,' Navaly claimed said. 'And Usmanov with Medvedev understand this. That is why the gift was registered to a controlled fund.'

Navalny produced documentation showing that in June 2010, the 'manor' belonged to Usmanov, worth £12.1 billion, who owns 30 per cent stake in Arsenal.

By August 2010, when Medvedev was president, the sprawling 32,300sq-ft property with an indoor swimming pool, had been transferred to the owner of a foundation supporting 'socially important public projects' called Sotsgosproekt, the director of which is a student friend of the Kremlin prime minister named Alexey Chetvertkov, according to Navalny.

Navalny claimed that billionaire Alisher Usmanov (left with Medvedev, right), the Arsenal FC shareholder, 'gave an extremely expensive mansion in Rublevka to a Medvedev-linked fund'

Navalny produced documentation showing that in June 2010, the 'manor' (pictured above) belonged to Usmanov, worth £12.1 billion, who owns 30 per cent stake in Arsenal

The house is in Znamenskoye, Russia, on the outskirts of Moscow, and has a 8,100square-foot guest house on a 4.3 hectare estate

The Anti-corruption Foundation (FBK) headed by Navalny claimed the former Usmanov house is part of a secret property empire linked to Medvedev and consisting of mansions, vineyards and yachts

The house is in Znamenskoye on the outskirts of Moscow, and has a 8,100sq-ft guest house on a 4.3 hectare estate.

The Anti-corruption Foundation (FBK) headed by Navalny claimed the former Usmanov house is part of a secret property empire linked to Medvedev and consisting of mansions, vineyards and yachts.

'The Prime Minister and his trusted people have developed a criminal scheme that is based not offshore, as often happens, but on non-profit foundations,' said the report.

'This is a very clever solution. It is almost impossible to trace the real owner of the assets, because the property being officially recorded in the foundations, in fact, does not belong to anyone.

'The Medvedev property is managed by his friends, fellow students, and trustees. The structure of this criminal scheme is so complicated that only its description took us a few months.'

Roman Rubanov, director of the anti-corruption organisation, called on the Investigation Committee - equivalent of the FBI - to open a criminal investigation against Medvedev and Usmanov.

The report names a number of figures close to Medvedev.

One, Vladimir Dyachenko, 'is the director of a company which owns the land in Kursk and Anapa vineyards, in fact belonging to Medvedev', claimed the Navalny report.

He also owns a company called PromTekhInvest which is based in the mansion allegedly gifted by Usmanov.

Earlier hacked emails suggested Dyachenko undertakes online shopping on behalf of Medvedev.

Sunday's march in Moscow was one of the biggest unauthorised demonstrations in recent years, with police putting turnout at 8,000 people.

A spokeswoman for Navalny's Anti-corruption Foundation (FBK) said on Twitter than he would be held overnight before being brought before a judge on Monday

Thousands of people filled central Pushkin Square, some shouting 'Russia without Putin'

Dozens of police vans and rows of riot officers were lined up as a police helicopter hovered overhead

Police officers moved to detain protesters and clear the square, with some using truncheons and pepper spray to disperse the crowd

Despite the dramatic scenes in Moscow, state TV did not cover the protests, instead showing soap operas and nature films

Some climbed on to lamp posts and the monument to poet Alexander Pushkin, shouting 'impeachment!'

Many of those taking part were teenagers and people in their 20s who would not remember life before Vladimir Putin.

Police bundled Navalny into a minibus as he was walking to the protest.

The crowd briefly tried to block it from driving off, shouting 'Shame!' and 'Let him out!'

'Guys, I am all right, go on along Tverskaya,' Navalny tweeted from the van.

Separately, police arrested 17 associates of Navalny who were at their office, setting up and monitoring a webcast of the rally.

All of them spent the night at the police station while authorities raided their office, reportedly taking out all equipment. It was not immediately clear what charges they may be facing.

From his cell on Sunday, Navalny posted on Twitter that he was 'proud' of the protesters and said the mass detentions were 'understandable'.

'The thieves defend themselves this way. But you cannot arrest everyone who is against corruption. There are millions of us,' he wrote.

He posted a selfie on Twitter from the courtroom on Monday morning, saying: 'A time will come when we'll put them on trial too - and that time it will be fair.'

Police also searched FBK offices over alleged incitement to hatred, and 'Eeeryone was detained and brought to the police,' the organisation's spokeswoman Kira Iarmych said

'The whole country is tired of corruption on such a scale,' 50-year-old Natalia Demidova said. 'Medvedev should be fired once such exposes come to light.'

Russian riot policemen detain an opposition activist during a protest rally at Pushkinskaya Square

Elsewhere, about 2,000 gathered in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, carrying signs such as 'No to corruption.'

In Saint Petersburg, about 4,000 people gathered in the city centre. 'We're tired of the lies, we have to do something,' said protester Sergei Timofeyev

Some held up images of yellow rubber ducks, following reports that Medvedev has a special house for a duck on one of his properties

The 40-year old, arguably Russia's most popular opposition leader, has twice been convicted of fraud and embezzlement charges which he has dismissed as politically motivated.

Medvedev's only response to the protests was to post on Instagram a message saying his day was 'not bad - I went skiing'.

He was hit by comments demanding answers on the corruption allegations.

'Be a grown-up man, respond to Navalny's investigation,' demanded one comment in response.

'When will you give answers to our questions?' said another.

'Dmitry Anatolievich (Medvedev), are you going to respond to accusations of corruption?'

Others demanded by no major TV channels reported on the protests in what was seen as a blatant an act of censorship by his government.

Elsewhere, about 2,000 gathered in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, carrying signs such as 'No to corruption'.

Some held up images of yellow rubber ducks, following reports that Medvedev has a special house for a duck on one of his properties.

In Saint Petersburg, about 4,000 people gathered in the city centre. 'We're tired of the lies, we have to do something,' said protester Sergei Timofeyev.

Local media estimated about 1,500 people turned out in each of the Siberian cities of Krasnoyarsk and Omsk

Russian riot policemen detain an opposition activist during a protest rally in Moscow

In the far-eastern city of Vladivostok, about 700 people nonetheless turned up, local website Prima Media said, and a dozen people were detained by the national guard

In the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, about 1,000 people turned up to protest against the government

The Russian constitution allows public gatherings, but recent laws have criminalised protests unauthorised by city authorities

A detained woman looks out of a police bus in downtown Moscow, Russia

Local media estimated about 1,500 people turned out in each of the Siberian cities of Krasnoyarsk and Omsk.

The Russian constitution allows public gatherings, but recent laws have criminalised protests unauthorised by city authorities, who frequently refuse to grant permission for rallies by Kremlin critics.

Navalny said on his website that 99 Russian cities planned to protest, but that in 72 of them the local authorities did not give permission, citing reasons such as street cleaning, a bell-ringing concert and rival events by various pro-Kremlin groups.

The authorities had also pressured students not to attend, with some cities even scheduling exams for Sunday, according to reports.

In the far-eastern city of Vladivostok, about 700 people nonetheless turned up, local website Prima Media said, and a dozen people were detained by the national guard.

In the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, about 1,000 people turned up.

Navalny, a 40-year-old lawyer by training announced plans to run for the presidency after he won a surprise 27 per cent of the vote in the Moscow mayoral election in 2013.

But he has been the subject of several legal prosecutions in recent years, and in February he was found guilty of embezzlement and given a five-year suspended sentence which could make him ineligible to run in next year's vote.