Who are Pussy Riot, were they responsible for the World Cup final 2018 pitch invasion and what were they protesting?
THE World Cup final between France and Croatia was suspended after protesters stormed on to the pitch.
Pussy Riot claimed responsibility for the World Cup invasion, but who are they and what were they protesting about? Here's the lowdown.
Who are Pussy Riot?
Pussy Riot is a Russian political punk group who has a rotating cast of musicians and artists.
Staunch activists, members Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, served 21-month jail terms following an anti-Putin performance at the altar of Moscow's largest cathedral in 2012.
Alyokhina was also detained in August 2017 in the Siberian city of Yakutsk after protesting with another Pussy Riot member against the imprisonment of Ukranian film-maker Oleg Sentsov.
The band staged another demonstration against Sentsov’s imprisonment by storming Trump Tower in New York in October 2018.
They have also slammed the US president Donald Trump in their songs Make America Great Again and Police State.
The family of Pussy Riot member Pyotr Verzilov who has been hospitalised in a toxicology unit in a serious condition claim he could have been poisoned.
He fell ill after a court hearing for Veronika Nikulshina, a fellow member of the protest group.
Both Verzilov and Nikulshina served 15-day jail sentences for disrupting July's World Cup final.
Did they invade the pitch at the World Cup 2018 final?
Four members of feminist punk band Pussy Riot halted the World Cup final after invading the pitch during the second half.
Russian group Pussy Riot has claimed responsibility for the incident as France beat Croatia 4-2 at the Luzhniki Stadium.
Stewards quickly removed the members of the group after they raced on to the pitch in the 52nd minute to make a statement towards Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Despite Kylian Mbappe giving a high five to one individual, Liverpool centre-back Dejan Lovren was less than impressed as he looked to throw one person on the ground.
What did they say about the pitch invasion?
Pussy Riot posted a tweet in Russian which said the following:
NEWS FLASH! Just a few minutes ago four Pussy Riot members performed in the Fifa World Cup final match — ”Policeman enters the Game”
Today is 11 years since the death of the great Russian poet, Dmitriy Prigov. Prigov created an image of a policeman, a carrier of the heavenly nationhood, in the russian culture.
The heavenly policeman, according to Prigov, talks on the two-way with the God Himself. The earthly policeman gets ready to disperse rallies.
The heavenly policeman gently touches a flower in a field and enjoys Russian football team victories, while the earthly policeman feels indifferent to Oleg Sentsov’s hunger strike. The heavenly policeman rises as an example of the nationhood, the earthly policeman hurts everyone.
The heavenly policeman protects baby’s sleep, the earthly policeman persecutes political prisoners, imprisons people for “reposts” and “likes”.
The heavenly policeman is the organiser of this World Cup’s beautiful carnival, the earthly policeman is afraid of the celebration. The heavenly policeman carefully watches for obeying the game rules, the earthly policeman enters the game not caring about the rules.
The Fifa World Cup has reminded us of the possibilities of the heavenly policeman in the Great Russia of the future, but the earthly policeman, entering the rule-less game breaks our world apart.
When the earthly policeman enters the game, we demand to:
1. Let all political prisoners free. Free Oleg Sentsov.
2. Not imprison for “likes”.
3. Stop Illegal arrests on rallies.
4. Allow political competition in the country.
5. Not fabricate criminal accusations and not keep people in jails for no reason.
6. Turn the earthly policeman into the heavenly policeman.