A day after imposing massive fines on Meta and Goggle over failure to delete illegal content, Russia has now blocked the website of the OVD-Info protest-monitoring group after the court ruling. The group has documented anti-Kremlin protests for years.&nbsp;

For the unversed, OVD-Info is an independent Russian human rights media project aimed at combating political persecution. However, Russia is on a spree to crackdown on dissent.&nbsp;

On Saturday (December 25), OVD-Info said that Russia's communication watchdog had blocked its website earlier this week. The monitoring group is also known for providing legal support to victims of political persecution.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/russian-president-vladimir-putin-says-western-diplomatic-boycott-of-beijing-winter-olympics-is-a-mistake-439338">Russian President Vladimir Putin says Western diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics is a mistake</a>

While informing the ruling, the group tweeted, "At the moment, we have not received a notice and do not know the reason for being blocked."

It is important to note that a Roskomnadzor registry of blocked websites showed that a Moscow region court had issued a ruling dated December 20 to "limit" access to the site.&nbsp;

However, later Saturday, Russian news agencies cited Roskomnadzor as confirming that it had blocked OVD-Info's website, as reported by AFP.&nbsp;

The Moscow region court had ruled that the group's activities were aimed at promoting "terrorism and extremism" in Russia.

Roskomnadzor added that it had sent "demands" to social media networks to "delete the organisation's accounts".

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-row-with-ukraine-russia-tests-tsirkon-hypersonic-missile-system-439712">Amid row with Ukraine, Russia tests Tsirkon hypersonic missile system</a>

Meta and Google fined

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has been slapped with a massive fine on Friday (December 24) by a Moscow court for failing to remove content that is deemed illegal.&nbsp;

The court's press service revealed on a messaging app Telegram that Meta has been fined $27 million. The court also informed that it has imposed a fine of $98 million on Google.&nbsp;

A day after imposing massive fines on Meta and Goggle over failure to delete illegal content, Russia has now blocked the website of the OVD-Info protest-monitoring group after the court ruling.

A day after imposing massive fines on Meta and Goggle over failure to delete illegal content, Russia has now blocked the website of the OVD-Info protest-monitoring group after the court ruling. The group has documented anti-Kremlin protests for years. For the unversed, OVD-Info is an independent Russian human rights media project aimed at combating political persecution. However, Russia is on a spree to crackdown on dissent. On Saturday (December 25), OVD-Info said that Russia's communication watchdog had blocked its website earlier this week. The monitoring group is also known for providing legal support to victims of political persecution. ALSO READ | Russian President Vladimir Putin says Western diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics is a mistake While informing the ruling, the group tweeted, "At the moment, we have not received a notice and do not know the reason for being blocked." It is important to note that a Roskomnadzor registry of blocked websites showed that a Moscow region court had issued a ruling dated December 20 to "limit" access to the site. However, later Saturday, Russian news agencies cited Roskomnadzor as confirming that it had blocked OVD-Info's website, as reported by AFP. The Moscow region court had ruled that the group's activities were aimed at promoting "terrorism and extremism" in Russia. Roskomnadzor added that it had sent "demands" to social media networks to "delete the organisation's accounts". ALSO READ | Amid row with Ukraine, Russia tests Tsirkon hypersonic missile system Meta and Google fined Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has been slapped with a massive fine on Friday (December 24) by a Moscow court for failing to remove content that is deemed illegal. The court's press service revealed on a messaging app Telegram that Meta has been fined $27 million. The court also informed that it has imposed a fine of $98 million on Google.

Russia blocks website of protest monitoring group for allegedly promoting 'terrorism and extremism'

A protest is unfolding in Russia, the demanding release of the Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny. Tens of thousands of demonstrators in Moscow and other 100 cities protest against President Putin's order to arrest 44 years old Alexei Navalny.

Pro-Navalny Protest in Moscow and other 100 cities of Russia

More than a thousand opposition activists of various stripes marched in central Moscow on Sunday after President <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/putin-rejects-idea-of-soviet-style-lifelong-leaders-for-russia-while-addressing-war-veterans-275230">Vladimir Putin</a> proposed re-drafting the constitution, unleashing political upheaval.

Protesters mostly young anti-fascist activists chanted "Revolution" and "No to dictatorship" and some carried copies of the constitution.

The annual sanctioned march was called to commemorate the memory of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova who were gunned down in Moscow by ultra-nationalists in 2009.

A number of independent local deputies including Yulia Galyamin and opposition-minded Russians joined the march, carrying copies of the constitution and chanting "Putin leave!".&nbsp;

Several people including a protester who carried a placard urging Putin to quit power were detained by police.

More than 1,400 people took part in the march, said the White Counter group which monitors political protests.

The march took place after Putin stunned the nation on Wednesday proposing sweeping amendments to the constitution, the first major changes to the country's basic law since it was adopted under Boris Yeltsin in 1993.&nbsp;

The move triggered the resignation of his government.

Many observers have said Putin's proposals are designed to ensure his grip on power after he leaves the Kremlin and his critics have accused him of orchestrating a "constitutional coup".

Sunday's turnout paled in comparison to the protests of last summer when tens of thousands took to the streets of Moscow to protest against the exclusion of opposition candidates from local elections, leading to wide-scale arrests and long jail terms for a number of demonstrators.

Local deputy Galyamina said it was important to protest against Putin's attempts to cling to power and change the constitution, calling them a "state coup."

Writing on Facebook, she said it was just the "beginning of a civil campaign" of resistance.

But Russia's top opposition leader <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russian-authorities-raid-navalnys-office-270458">Alexei Navalny</a>&nbsp;said on Friday he did not support rallies in "defence of the cnstitution".

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Что касается разнообразных предлагаемых акций "в защиту Конституции". 
Конституция РФ - омерзительна. В ней заложен механизм узурпации власти. По этой конституции у нас всё отняли - от выборов до пенсий - и дальше хотят отнимать. 
Не надо её защищать.
— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) <a href="https://twitter.com/navalny/status/1218144227894259718?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"The Russian constitution is abominable," he said on Twitter, adding it allowed authorities to usurp power.&nbsp;"No need to protect it."

Observers have said Putin's proposals have caught Kremlin critics off guard and managed to drive a new wedge between members of the Russian opposition.

More than a thousand opposition activists of various stripes marched in central Moscow on Sunday after President Vladimir Putin proposed re-drafting the constitution, unleashing political upheaval.

More than a thousand opposition activists of various stripes marched in central Moscow on Sunday after President Vladimir Putin proposed re-drafting the constitution, unleashing political upheaval. Protesters mostly young anti-fascist activists chanted "Revolution" and "No to dictatorship" and some carried copies of the constitution. The annual sanctioned march was called to commemorate the memory of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova who were gunned down in Moscow by ultra-nationalists in 2009. A number of independent local deputies including Yulia Galyamin and opposition-minded Russians joined the march, carrying copies of the constitution and chanting "Putin leave!". Several people including a protester who carried a placard urging Putin to quit power were detained by police. More than 1,400 people took part in the march, said the White Counter group which monitors political protests. The march took place after Putin stunned the nation on Wednesday proposing sweeping amendments to the constitution, the first major changes to the country's basic law since it was adopted under Boris Yeltsin in 1993. The move triggered the resignation of his government. Many observers have said Putin's proposals are designed to ensure his grip on power after he leaves the Kremlin and his critics have accused him of orchestrating a "constitutional coup". Sunday's turnout paled in comparison to the protests of last summer when tens of thousands took to the streets of Moscow to protest against the exclusion of opposition candidates from local elections, leading to wide-scale arrests and long jail terms for a number of demonstrators. Local deputy Galyamina said it was important to protest against Putin's attempts to cling to power and change the constitution, calling them a "state coup." Writing on Facebook, she said it was just the "beginning of a civil campaign" of resistance. But Russia's top opposition leader Alexei Navalny said on Friday he did not support rallies in "defence of the cnstitution". Что касается разнообразных предлагаемых акций "в защиту Конституции". Конституция РФ - омерзительна. В ней заложен механизм узурпации власти. По этой конституции у нас всё отняли - от выборов до пенсий - и дальше хотят отнимать. Не надо её защищать. — Alexey Navalny (@navalny) January 17, 2020 × "The Russian constitution is abominable," he said on Twitter, adding it allowed authorities to usurp power. "No need to protect it." Observers have said Putin's proposals have caught Kremlin critics off guard and managed to drive a new wedge between members of the Russian opposition.

Russia: Activists take aim at Vladimir Putin in march against repression