At Least 80 People Detained At Moscow Tournament Commemorating Left-Wing Activist

Russia's OMON riot police have broken up a traditional martial arts tournament organized by an antifascist group, detaining at least 80 people, OVD-Info, a group that monitors protests and arrests in Russia, reported.

The competition was being held on November 17 to commemorate the death of one of the group's co-founders, Ivan Khutorskoy, who was shot dead near the entrance to his Moscow residence 10 years ago.

Members of the "antifa" or antifascist group, who often engage in violent opposition to right-wing groups, said pictures of their passports were taken at the police station.

Khutorsky, a lawyer who had organized mixed martial arts tournaments devoted to combating racism, was a co-founder of RASH -- Red and Anarchist Skinheads.

Investigators have said that a Russian nationalist, Aleksei Korshunov, killed Khutorskoy.

After Khutorskoy’s killing, the suspect went into hiding in the Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzhya where he died in September 2011.

An investigation found that he accidentally died in an explosion from a grenade that he wore on his body.