Russian court bans punk rock video from websites

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Sergei Karpukhin  / ReutersNadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich of punk band Pussy Riot sit in a glass-walled cage during a court hearing in Moscow on August 17.By ReutersMOSCOW -- A Russian court ruled Thursday that video footage of the Pussy Riot punk group protesting against President Vladimir Putin in a church was "extremist" and should be removed from websites.

The demonstration last February offended many Russian Orthodox Christians. But Putin has been criticized by U.S. and European leaders over what they saw as disproportionate jail sentences imposed on three Pussy Riot members.

Their trial was also seen by Putin's critics as part of a clampdown on dissent.

'Mass disorder'

The Moscow court said it had based its ruling on conclusions by a panel of experts who studied the video, showing band members in colorful mini-skirts and ski masks dancing in front of the altar of Moscow's main Russian Orthodox cathedral.Members of the band Pussy Riot, arrested in February after storming a Moscow cathedral, were sentenced to two years in jail Friday. Critics say the arrest was Putin's personal revenge, raising questions about justice in Russia. NBC's Duncan Golestani reports.

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