Russia election: Police arrest 550 at city protests

5 March 2012 Last updated at 17:55 ET Help

Police in Russia have made 550 arrests after protests against Vladimir Putin's election as president, with protest leader Alexey Navalny among those held.

They detained 300 people in central St Petersburg out of a crowd of about 800 protesters, according to local police.

A further 250 were detained in the capital Moscow, including Mr Navalny, who was later released.

Foreign states have accepted Mr Putin won on Sunday but observers said the poll had been skewed in his favour.

The BBC's world affairs editor John Simpson reports from Moscow.

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