Authorities in the southwestern Kursk region detained and hours later released one of the displaced residents who protested the end of state support payments, media reported Tuesday.
According to Pepel Kursk, Alyona Liskova was among 200 people who gathered Monday to urge local officials to continue monthly payments of 65,000 rubles ($800) as compensation for damage to their homes during Ukraine’s invasion.
On Saturday, Kursk region Governor Alexander Khinshtein and First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said funds previously used for those payments would instead be redirected toward broader recovery and development efforts starting in January.
Pepel reported that Liskova was the protest leader who addressed Governor Khinshtein and President Vladimir Putin on behalf of the displaced residents at Monday’s protest.
Police detained Liskova sometime early Tuesday, Pepel wrote on its Telegram channel before noon Moscow time.
At around 3:30 p.m. Moscow time, Pepel reported that Liskova was released, and said that police officers “had a conversation” with her, without pressing any charges.
Independent Russian media that covered Monday’s protest highlighted a filmed exchange where Khinshtein’s advisor blamed the Kursk region’s male population for failing to defend their homes against the Ukrainian incursion.
More than 150,000 people were ordered to evacuate towns and villages near the border after Ukrainian forces launched a surprise incursion in August 2024. Ukraine was forced to retreat earlier this year after Russian forces, backed by North Korean troops, launched a successful counteroffensive.
Displaced residents have since staged several protests over poor living conditions and what they describe as inadequate compensation.
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