• Russian court bans 'extremist' Pussy Riot video from websites

    Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters

    Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich of punk band Pussy Riot sit in a glass-walled cage during a court hearing in Moscow on August 17.

    By Reuters

    MOSCOW -- A Russian court ruled Thursday that video footage of the Pussy Riot punk group protesting against President Vladimir Putin in a church was "extremist" and should be removed from websites.

    The demonstration last February offended many Russian Orthodox Christians. But Putin has been criticized by U.S. and European leaders over what they saw as disproportionate jail sentences imposed on three Pussy Riot members.

    Their trial was also seen by Putin's critics as part of a clampdown on dissent.

    'Mass disorder'
    The Moscow court said it had based its ruling on conclusions by a panel of experts who studied the video, showing band members in colorful mini-skirts and ski masks dancing in front of the altar of Moscow's main Russian Orthodox cathedral.

    Members of the band Pussy Riot, arrested in February after storming a Moscow cathedral, were sentenced to two years in jail Friday. Critics say the arrest was Putin's personal revenge, raising questions about justice in Russia. NBC's Duncan Golestani reports.

    Judge Marina Musimovich said the footage "has elements of extremism; in particular there are words and actions which humiliate various social groups based on their religion." She said it also had calls for mutiny and "mass disorder."

    The verdict said that free distribution of the video could ignite racial and religious hatred.

    The court's ruling applies to other videos released by the band, including a performance in Moscow's Red Square, where calls for mass disorder could be heard. Such calls were not made inside the church.

    The websites are now likely to be included in a state register and could be blocked if the banned content is not removed.

    Protesters put head covers on sculptures in Norway to show their continued support of the jailed Russian punk rock group called "Pussy Riot." NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.

    The Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor said that once the court decision takes effect it will monitor how it is implemented.

    Russian female punk rock protester moved to solo cell after tensions


    Three members of Pussy Riot convicted in August of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred for their "punk prayer," which the Russian Orthodox Church has cast as part of a concerted attack on the church and the faithful.

    The women said the protest, in which they burst into Christ the Savior Cathedral and called on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Putin, was not motivated by hatred and was meant to mock the church leadership's support for the longtime leader.

    Russian whistleblower dies in strange circumstances

    Band members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina are serving two-year jail sentences over the protest last February. A third member, Yekaterina Samutsevich, walked free last month when her sentence was suspended on appeal.

    "To me this is a clear attribute of censorship -- censorship of art and censorship of culture, of the protest culture which is very important for any country, let alone for Russia," Samutsevich told reporters outside court.

    Three female punk rockers are put on trial in Russia after taking over the pulpit at an Orthodox cathedral and performing a controversial song criticizing President Putin. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.

    "Now of course the fact that they will be blocking all Pussy Riot videos as I understand, all photos -- this is horrible. Naturally, I will lodge an appeal and I will try to do it today," she added.

    Freed Russian scientist: 'Nothing has changed'

    Putin, a former KGB officer who has cultivated close ties with the Orthodox church over 13 years in power, has rebuffed Western criticism about the prison terms meted out.

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  • Russian court sentences Pussy Riot rockers to 2 years in prison

    Three members of the Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot remain in jail after a performance in protest of Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral. NBC's Michelle Kosinski reports.

    By NBC News wire services

    Updated at 11:29 a.m. ET: MOSCOW --  A judge sentenced three women who staged an anti-Kremlin protest on the altar of Moscow's main Russian Orthodox church to two years in jail each on Friday in a trial seen as test of President Vladimir Putin's tolerance of dissent.

    The trio from punk band Pussy Riot, handcuffed in a courtroom cage, reacted with giggles and one rolled her eyes when the judge issued the sentences after reading the guilty verdict for almost three hours.

    A man in the courtroom shouted "Shame!" and hundreds of protesters outside the Moscow courthouse repeated that chant and whistled when news of the sentence came.

    "They are in jail because it is Putin's personal revenge," opposition leader Alexei Navalny said in the courtroom. "This verdict was written by Vladimir Putin."


    Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, Maria Alyokhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, were convicted of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred for performing a "punk prayer" in Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral. They called on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Putin.

    Their feminist punk collective has about 10 members who appear in public in ski masks for anonymous impromptu performances they describe as a form of protest art.

    The defendants said they were protesting against close ties between Putin and the Russian Orthodox church and did not intend to offend believers, but the judge rejected those arguments.

    The U.S. Embassy in Russia criticized the sentences.

    "Today's sentence in the Pussy Riot case looks disproportionate to the actions," the U.S. Embassy in Russia wrote in Russian on Friday on its Twitter microblog.

    Pussy Riot supporters protest at Russian cathedral as global campaign heats up

    Prosecutors had requested three-year sentences. The two-year sentences include the nearly six months served since the defendants were jailed following the Feb. 21 protest.

    Natalia Kolesnikova / AFP - Getty Images

    Members of the punk band Pussy Riot -- Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, center, Maria Alyokhina, right, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, left -- are escorted Friday by policewomen inside a Moscow court building.

    In a sign of the tension over the trial in a small Moscow courtroom, Judge Marina Syrova was assigned bodyguards on Thursday following what authorities said were threats.

    Divisions
    The trial divided Russia's Orthodox Christians, with many backing the authorities' demands for severe punishment, but others saying the women should be granted clemency.

    The trial featured a parade of state witnesses who say they were traumatized by the church performance, which prosecutors called an abuse of God.

    Russia's Pussy Riot: Unmasked and on trial

    Ahead of the verdict, their lawyers said the outcome will be dictated by the Kremlin. Putin's supporters denied that and portrayed the women as blasphemers and self-publicists who should be punished for committing a premeditated outrage against the Church.

    Members of Pussy Riot were found guilty Friday after staging this protest on Feb. 21, 2012, inside Christ The Savior Cathedral in Moscow.

    "It was a conscious deed. They understood quite clearly where they were going and why," said Vladimir Burmatov, who represents Putin's United Russia party in parliament.

    Pussy Riot was formed last year in anger at Putin's decision to return to the presidency in an election after four years as premier. The band's public performances were popular on the Internet, but it is the trial that has brought them global fame.

    The charges against them raised concern abroad about freedom of speech in Russia two decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

    Pop star Madonna has joined the chorus of criticism over the trial of a Russian women's punk band accused of religious hatred. The three women face years in jail after mounting a protest against Vladimir Putin on the altar of the country's main cathedral. It's part of a widening government crackdown on dissent. ITV's Paul Davies reports.

    Small, but raucous protests were held Friday in a few dozen cities in support of the three women. A few dozen people came out in Barcelona, Spain, a couple hundred in Paris, and a handful in Washington. Other rallies were held in Bulgaria, Ukraine and elsewhere.

    More Russia coverage from NBCNews.com

    The opposition says Putin saw the trial initially as a chance to strengthen his relationship with the influential Russian Orthodox Church -- about 70 percent of Russians say they follow the faith -- but his plans backfired.

    Although believers were united in outrage that the band thrashed out a "punk prayer" deriding Putin in a place they consider sacrosanct, many were upset by the Church hierarchy's lack of forgiveness and calls for "divine retribution."

    From March 2012: Anti-Putin activists pay high price, but refuse to back down

    Many Russians, including some of the Orthodox faithful, are concerned about ties between church and state under Patriarch Kirill, who has praised Putin's rule as a "miracle of God."

    Aware that a long sentence could reinforce the picture Pussy Riot has painted of him as intolerant and repressive, Putin told reporters this month that although the women had done "nothing good," they should not be judged too harshly.

    But the damage to Putin's image abroad has already been done, and divisions between his supporters and opponents have widened, risking polarizing society even more than when protests took off against his 12-year-rule during the winter.

    Complete World news coverage on NBCNews.com

    In moves seen by the opposition as a crackdown, parliament has recently rushed through laws increasing fines for protesters, tightening controls on the Internet -- which is used to arrange protests -- and imposing stricter rules on defamation.

    Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • Pussy Riot supporters protest at Russian cathedral as global campaign heats up

    Yevgeny Feldman / AFP - Getty Images

    Supporters of Pussy Riot hold individual letters that spell the phrase "Blessed are the merciful" outside the Church of Christ the Savior in central Moscow on Wednesday.

    By NBC News wire services

    MOSCOW -- Security guards scuffled with masked protesters who demonstrated outside Moscow's main cathedral on Wednesday in support of three members of Pussy Riot, as a wave of global support for the Russian punk rockers gained speed.

    Witnesses said 18 demonstrators in colorful balaclavas -- similar to those worn by the band members when they staged an irreverent protest at the same church -- mounted the steps of Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral and held up black cards with white letters spelling out the phrase, "Blessed are the merciful."

    Guards moved swiftly to disperse the demonstrators and treated some of them roughly, Internet TV channel Dozhd reported. Pussy Riot supporters said on social media that at least two people had been detained.

    A Moscow court is to issue a verdict on Friday following the trial of the three women who sang a "punk prayer" on the altar of Christ the Savior -- Moscow's main cathedral -- in February, calling on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Vladimir Putin, then prime minister and now president.

    Prosecutors want the judge to convict Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, Maria Alyokhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred and sentence each to three years in prison.


    Putin has said the women should not be judged too harshly, but he risks appearing weak if they walk free.

    Winning over hearts abroad
    Since their arrests, the women have been vilified by the Russian state media -- while winning over hearts abroad.

    Supporters of the band will mobilize this week in at least a two dozen cities worldwide to hold simultaneous demonstrations an hour before the court issues its verdict.

    Russia's Pussy Riot: Unmasked and on trial

    Calls for the women to be freed have come from a long list of celebrities such as Madonna and Bjork. Protests have been held in a number of Western capitals, including Berlin, where last week about 400 people joined Canadian electro-pop performance artist Peaches to support the band.

    Three female punk rockers are put on trial in Russia after taking over the pulpit at an Orthodox cathedral and performing a controversial song criticizing President Putin. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.

    In one of the most extravagant displays, Reykjavik Mayor Jon Gnarr rode through the streets of the Icelandic capital in a Gay Pride parade this weekend dressed like a band member -- wearing a bright pink dress and matching balaclava -- while lip-synching to one of Pussy Riot's songs.

    PhotoBlog: Pussy Riot fans wear balaclavas to rally behind band

    Amnesty International has called the women prisoners of conscience and begun collecting signatures by text message for a petition to be sent to the Russian government, while the U.S. State Department has repeatedly expressed its concern.

    Madonna donned a balaclava during a concert in Moscow last week and had "Pussy Riot" written on her bare back. Yoko Ono sent a personal message to Samutsevich, saying that "the power of your every word is now growing in us."

    Pop star Madonna has joined the chorus of criticism over the trial of a Russian women's punk band accused of religious hatred. The three women face years in jail after mounting a protest against Vladimir Putin on the altar of the country's main cathedral. It's part of a widening government crackdown on dissent. ITV's Paul Davies reports.

    A group of leading British musicians, including Pete Townshend of the Who and members of the Pet Shop Boys, published a letter in The Times of London ahead of Putin's visit during the Olympics to urge him to give the Pussy Riot members a fair hearing.

    On Friday, activists in more than a dozen cities, from Moscow to Toronto, are expected to take to the streets at 2 p.m. Moscow time (4 a.m. ET), an hour before the judge is to issue the verdict. The protests are being coordinated by the defense lawyers.

    Venues vary from the square outside the ornate Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona to the yard outside the Russian Embassy in London.

    More Russia coverage from NBCNews.com

    In Paris, the protest will be held on Stravinsky Square and led by 29-year-old Alexey Prokopyev from Russie-Libertés, a Paris-based organization formed in December to bring together Russians studying or working in France.

    "Most people go to these rallies in Paris because we cannot be in Russia at the moment for various reasons -- because of jobs, classes," said Prokopyev, who was born in the Soviet Union and has spent most of the past 17 years in France. "We all wish we were in Moscow now, but since we can't we do it in Paris."

    Russie-Libertés also is helping to organize rallies in Marseille, Nice, Lyons and Montpellier.

    From March 2012: Anti-Putin activists pay high price, but refuse to back down

    Prokopyev said that he and his peers "want Russia to be a normal country" and be able to elect a president "who doesn't make the country where we were born a laughingstock."

    In New York, Friday's protest will take place outside the Russian Consulate and later on Times Square.

    "It's absurd that this case is being treated as criminal, while in any other civilized country that would be merely an administrative offense," said Xenia Grubstein, a 31-year-old journalist helping to organize the New York protest.

    'Serious problems' with vote that kept Putin in power, monitors say

    A protest is also planned in Washington, where last month punk rockers and arts activists rallied outside the Russian Embassy.

    'Putin's Russia'
    In France, Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti last week issued a statement expressing concern that artistic freedom was on trial.

    Complete international news coverage on NBCNews.com

    A German cross-party group of lawmakers sent a letter to the Russian ambassador calling the five months the band members have spent in custody and the possible prison terms "draconian and disproportionate" punishment.

    The international press has been full of critical reports from the trial. One of Germany's most influential magazines, Der Spiegel, featured the band on its cover: a picture of Tolokonnikova behind bars and the headline "Putin's Russia."

    The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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  • Russian prosecutors seek 3-year sentences for Pussy Riot rockers

    Yuri Kochetkov / EPA

    Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, a member of the Pussy Riot punk group, is escorted Tuesday to Khamovnichesky district court for the next session of her trial in Moscow.

    By The Associated Press

    MOSCOW -- Prosecutors on Tuesday called for three-year sentences for the members of a feminist punk band who performed an anti-Vladimir Putin stunt in Moscow's main cathedral, ignoring demands by human rights groups that the three women be set free.

    Prosecutor Alexander Nikiforov portrayed the request as lenient, saying it takes into account the fact that two of the defendants are young mothers and that they have good references.

    The hooliganism charges the three women face can carry a sentence of up to 7 years in prison.

    The three women — Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 23; Maria Alekhina, 24; and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 29 — have been in custody for five months following the February stunt, in which they took over a church pulpit in Christ the Savior cathedral for less than a minute, singing, high-kicking and dancing.


    Their case is part of a widening government crackdown on dissent that followed Putin's election in March and caused strong protests in Russia and abroad. Musicians including Madonna, the Who's Pete Townshend and Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys have urged their release, and Amnesty International has called them prisoners of conscience.

    The verdict is expected this week.

    Divisive trial
    The trial has sharply divided Russia. Some believers felt insulted by the act, while rights groups have declared the women prisoners of conscience.

    Don't judge Pussy Riot too harshly, Putin says

    Orthodox leaders have ignored calls by many believers to pardon the women and urge the court to dismiss the case.

    The defendants have said their goal was to express their resentment over Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill's support for Putin's rule. But prosecutors have insisted throughout the trial that there were no political motives behind the performance.

    "They set themselves off against the Orthodox world and sought to devalue traditions and dogmas that have been formed for the centuries," Nikiforov said Tuesday.

    From March 2012: Anti-Putin activists pay high price, but refuse to back down

    'Punk prayer'
    Members of the band say they did not mean to hurt anyone's religious feelings when they performed the "punk prayer."

    Larisa Pavlova, a lawyer for the church employees who were described as the injured party in the case told the court on Tuesday that she supports the sentencing recommendation.

    More on this story from British broadcaster ITV News

    Pavlova said most hooliganism in Russia is committed when people are drunk and they often regret what they have done — but the defendants "thoroughly planned, rehearsed (their performance) and were fully aware of what they were doing."

    "And they had the audacity to say in court that they did the right thing, that it's OK and that they're ready to keep on doing such things," Pavlova said.

    Tolokonnikova chuckled as Pavlova mentioned in her speech that feminism in Russia is incompatible with Orthodox faith.

    Three female punk rockers are put on trial in Russia after taking over the pulpit at an Orthodox cathedral and performing a controversial song criticizing President Putin. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.

    Pussy Riot lawyer Violetta Volkova voiced the band's complaint that the women had been deprived of sleep and food throughout the trial, describing it as "torture."

    Russian lawyers say Pussy Riot women mistreated

    "In this trial, authorities, not the girls, have dealt a crushing blow on the Russian Orthodox Church," Volkova said. "Time has turned back — back to the Middle Ages."

    The trial has sharply divided Russia. Some believers felt insulted by the act, while rights groups have declared the women prisoners of conscience.

    PhotoBlog: Punk rockers Pussy Riot in court over anti-Putin protest

    Orthodox leaders have ignored calls by many believers to pardon the women and urge the court to dismiss the case.

    Lawyer: Disproportionate charges
    Mark Feygin, a lawyer for the band, told the court that the charges the women are facing are disproportionate to what they have done:

    "Many of the things they have done were clumsy and too shocking, but there are no grounds for criminal prosecution here," he told the court.

    More Russia coverage from NBCNews.com

    Feygin said that the guilty verdict would "break a bond between the government and people for good" and that "society will never forgive the state for persecuting the innocent."

    Russian veteran rights activist Lyudmila Alexeyeva told the Interfax news agency that a jail sentence for Pussy Riot would be "a disgrace for Russia and the Orthodox Church."

    Amnesty International has said it considers the three women to be prisoners of conscience "detained solely for the peaceful expression of their beliefs."

    Complete international coverage on NBCNews.com

    Archdeacon Andrei Kurayev, an influential Orthodox blogger and Professor of the Moscow Theological Academy, warned in an interview with the RIA Novosti news agency on Tuesday that jail time for Pussy Riot would "turn them into martyrs" and would only feed hostility toward the church.

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