Police in Veliky Novgorod on [date] interrupted a picket by the local branch of the liberal Yabloko party, which had been approved by the city administration. The protest was held opposite the office of the ruling United Russia party near the Central Market, where participants displayed posters demanding fair competition in elections under the party's pre-election slogan "For peace and freedom."
Thirty minutes after the action began, firefighters, the National Guard, patrol police, and dog handlers arrived at the scene. Law enforcement told the protesters that a bomb threat had been received regarding the market and demanded that they stop the picket. It was not specified what security measures were taken at the market itself.
Earlier, the regional Yabloko branch received a warning from Veliky Novgorod prosecutor Alexander Perebeinos. The reason was campaign videos titled "Russia needs peace!" in which the prosecutor saw "signs" of social discord, "discrediting" of the army, and "fakes" about it.
This is not the first case of opposition to Yabloko's campaigning in the regions. In the Novgorod region, the election commission asked the prosecutor's office to check a candidate's video for prohibited content; in Baikalsk, Irkutsk region, the mayor forced the removal of a party banner; and in the Republic of Sakha and Stavropol Krai, state newspapers refused to print Yabloko's program.