MOSCOW — Almost all teenagers, who were detained at an unauthorised rally in downtown Moscow on August 3, have been released, Moscow human rights ombudsperson Tatyana Potyaeva told TASS.

"I’m in touch with the Interior Ministry, they will give us the exact figure tomorrow, this concerns dozens of minors. Now nearly all teenagers have been released," Potyaeva said. However, teenagers, whose parents do not live in Moscow, are facing some difficulties, she noted.

Most complaints sent to the ombudsperson were related to no access to lawyers, she said. "I contacted both with the Interior Ministry’s leadership and regional security department and voiced the problem and at 23.30 yesterday eleven lawyers of the Interior Ministry’s department were allowed."

According to the Interior Ministry’s department in Moscow, some 600 people were detained for taking part in the unauthorised rally in Moscow on Saturday, which drew nearly 1,500 people.

The Moscow authorities had warned the rally’s participants about their responsibility and that they must not violate the law. The police had warned about the risks of various provocations at the unauthorised rally on August 3 and called on citizens and guests of the capital to avoid participation in it.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said organisers of the unauthorised rallies in the Russian capital sought to involve their participants in riots.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin

According to the mayor, many of those who participated in the rally had no relation to the upcoming elections to the Moscow City Duma (parliament).

"Many participants of riots had no relation to Moscow and moreover, the elections to the Moscow City Duma. I’m sure that Muscovites understand this very well," the mayor said, stressing that the riots were aimed at pursuing someone’s political and selfish goals.

Moscow’s prosecutors have launched an investigation into administrative offence against 15 unregistered candidates to the Moscow City Duma (parliament), who organised the unauthorised rallies on July 14 and July 27. They had ignored the warnings.

In a related move, Russia’s Foreign Ministry will submit official notifications to Washington and Berlin over interference of their diplomats and the state-run media in Russia’s politics via covering unsanctioned rallies in Moscow on August 3, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a televised interview with Rossiya’1channel on August 4.

"As you know, nothing can be rubbed out on the internet. Unconditionally, we will officially submit all the files to the US Embassy in Moscow, and not just to the embassy. I think that the US leadership will be very surprised at how their diplomats meddle in Russia's internal affairs," Zakharova said recalling US multiple calls on Russia to stop interfering in US politics.

She also pointed out that along with western diplomats, some media outlets attempted to interfere in Russia’s domestic affairs. She named Germany’s Deutsche Welle news channel among them.—TASS