Russian protest leaders arrested

Police in Moscow have arrested top opposition figures along with demonstrators after a protest march on the eve of Vladimir Putin's inauguration as president tried to reach the Kremlin.

The march by about 20,000 people to an island adjacent to the Kremlin proceeded peacefully until a small group tried to break off and cross a bridge across the Moscow River, which was blocked by police.

As more people crowded toward the bridge, police sent reinforcements to the cordon, pushed demonstrators back to the rally site and began seizing demonstrators.

At the rally site, opposition leaders Sergei Udaltsov, Alexei Navalny and Boris Nemtsov were detained.