Over a thousand people gathered in central Moscow on Sunday to join a protest organized by several opposition activist groups. Around 1,700 demonstrators took part in the rally on Sakharov Avenue, according to the Moscow police department. The event organizers called on various opposition movements to unite, urging authorities to solve some ecological and housing problems. They also demanded that the authorities release those they called “political prisoners.” The rally was peaceful with no breaches of public order, police said.