Russian Police Raid Gay Bars In Moscow, Media Says

Police in Moscow targeted multiple gay-friendly nightclubs and a men's sauna in what appeared to be simultaneous raids, local media outlets said Saturday.

The raids come two days after Russia's Supreme Court labelled what it calls the "international LGBT movement" as "extremist", in a move rights groups warned could precede a wider crackdown.

Police could be seen standing at the entrance of a nightclub on Malaya Yakimanka Street, where a large dance party was taking place, video from the Ostorozhno Novosti news outlet showed.

"In the middle of the party, they stopped the music and (police) began going into the lounges," one eyewitness told the outlet, who said officers were taking photos of their passports.