Two members of Pussy Riot were left with chemical burns and head injuries after they were attacked by youths in a branch of McDonald’s, the group said on Thursday.
Maria Alekhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova were left covered in green stains after “an organized group” of young men attacked them with antiseptic, pepper spray and weapons, said Tolokonnikova’s husband, Pyotr Verzilov.
A video released by Pussy Riot showed six young men wearing patriotic Russian symbols shouting obscenities at the women while videoing the action in a branch of the fast-food chain in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod.
One held up a placard saying: “Dirty whores, get out of the city.”
Pussy Riot’s lawyer Yevgeny Gubin told Interfax that the attackers also “threw metal objects” at the women.
This is not the first time members of the music band have been attacked since they were released from prison sentences for hooliganism in December last year.
They were whipped by Cossacks and questioned by Russian police over allegations of theft in Sochi during the Winter Olympics, according to a video shot by the group.
Tolokonnikova posted doctors’ statements on Twitter saying she suffered chemical burns to her eyes, face and hands from the attack.
Alekhina said she required stitches for scratches on her forehead and suffered concussion.
“At 7:20am, an organized group barged into the McDonald’s where members of Pussy Riot with their crew were having breakfast and attacked them with pepper spray, green antiseptic and other weapons,” Verzilov said.
Russian police were investigating the incident, the Interfax news agency reported.
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