Dueling demonstrations in Moscow

MOSCOW, March 2 (UPI) -- About 12,000 marchers showed up in Moscow Saturday to call for a ban on adoptions of Russian kids by foreign parents, officials said.

The protest by pro-Kremlin activists wanted the 2-month-old ban on adoptions by families in the United States extended to all foreigners.

Russia's opposition was also out in force in the capital Saturday. The RIA Novosti news agency said the smaller protest was organized by opposition leader Sergei Udaltsov, who remained under house arrest while awaiting trial on charges of plotting to overthrow the government.

Police said the rally drew about 500 people, while a Moscow radio station said the crowd was closer to 2,000, RIA Novosti said.