Russia protests: Nine arrested at rallies in support of woman denied chance to see sick daughter in hospital

'Freedom to political prisoners,' chants Moscow crowd

Marchers clashed with police officers (Reuters)

At least nine protesters have reportedly been detained in Russia, after marching to show solidarity with an activist who was initially barred from seeing her dying daughter in hospital.

The demonstrations on Sunday, dubbed "Marches Of Maternal Anger", were held in Moscow and St Petersburg, with similar rallies reported in Kazan, Makhachkala, Kirov, Rostov-on-Don, Yekaterinburg, Yaroslavl and Oryol.

Anastasia Shevchenko, an activist from Rostov-on-Don, was placed under house arrest on 23 January, over her work with opposition movement Open Russia.

Her 17-year-old daughter was taken to a local hospital on 30 January after suffering a cardiac failure.

The activist requested permission to visit the teenager but said it was only granted hours before her daughter passed away, according to Radio Free Europe.

Ms Shevchenko faces charges under a 2015 Russian law against "undesirable organisations" and remains under house arrest.

She is the first person to face criminal prosecution under the law.

"Freedom to political prisoners," shouted protesters who gathered in Moscow.

"Our system has reached such a stage that it is fighting against single mothers with multiple children, against children," said Yulia Galyamina, a politician who organised the marches.

Small fights broke out during the Moscow protest after members of a pro-Kremlin group, South East Radical Block (SERB), tried to block the march.

SERB leader Gosha Tarasevich and Mikhail Kriger, an activist with the liberal Solidarnost movement, were both detained.

At least seven partcipants were also detained at a march in St Petersburg, after police officers told a crowd of 150 protesters to disperse.

Many marchers refused to leave the rally.

"Many of my female friends who decided to go out to the streets with me this Sunday have the very same feeling: anger that we, too, have children and we, too, can be arrested at any moment,” Ms Galyamina said.

“This is not only a question of being involved in politics. Anyone can be oppressed by the state or simply be harmed by the state, which meddles in people's lives instead of helping them."