MOSCOW -- Authorities in the Russian capital have fenced off Pushkin Square two days after an anticorruption protest drew thousands of protesters to the spot in central Moscow.
The square was blocked by high, sturdy metal fences mounted on concrete blocks on March 28.
A sign on the fence said that the square had been blocked for repairs to the monument to Russian poet Aleksandr Pushkin that stands at its center.
The repairs will be conducted between April and September under a contract signed by city authorities on May 13, 2016, the poster said.
Thousands of people crowded Pushkin Square and adjacent areas on March 26 for an antigovernment protest focusing on allegations of corruption among top officials.
Police detained hundreds of people including Aleksei Navalny, the anticorruption crusader and opposition leader who was behind the rallies in nearly 100 cities nationwide.
