In brief: Anti-Kremlin protesters held

MOSCOW – Russian police broke up anti-Kremlin protests in Moscow and St. Petersburg on Sunday and detained more than 100 demonstrators, including several opposition leaders.

In Moscow, several hundred demonstrators gathered in a central square, defying a ban imposed by authorities – a ban the protesters said violates the Russian constitution’s guarantee of the right to gather.

They denounced the policies of President Dmitry Medvedev and his predecessor Vladimir Putin, who continues to wield broad power.

Protests also were held Sunday in Yekaterinburg, Russia’s third-largest city, in the Ural Mountains; in Krasnoyarsk in central Siberia; and in the far eastern port of Vladivostok.

New senator gives stance on abortion

WASHINGTON – Republican Sen.-elect Scott Brown of Massachusetts said Sunday he opposes federal funding for abortions, but thinks women should have the right to choose whether to have one.

Brown told ABC’s “This Week” that he disagrees with his party’s position that the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion should be overturned, saying the abortion question is best handled by a woman, her family and her doctor.

Brown has said the GOP shouldn’t take his vote for granted on every issue.

Input considered on 9/11 trial sites

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration said Sunday it would consider local opposition when deciding where to hold Sept. 11 trials and pledged to seek swift justice for the professed mastermind of the attacks.

Objections from New York City officials and residents have intensified since the Justice Department announced it planned to put Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and accused Sept. 11 conspirators on trial in federal court in lower Manhattan.

“The president believes that we need to take into consideration what the local authorities are saying,” White House aide David Axelrod said. “But he also believes … that we ought to bring Khalid Sheikh Mohammad and all others who are involved in terrorist acts to justice swift and sure.”

Koreans set aside row, talk factories

SEOUL, South Korea – North and South Korean officials held talks today on a joint industrial complex just days after the North renewed tensions between the neighbors by firing artillery toward their disputed sea border.

North Korea lobbed dozens of shells near the western sea border during a military exercise last week, prompting South Korea to respond with a barrage of warning shots.

Despite the flare-up, officials of the two Koreas met at the North Korean border town of Kaesong today to discuss how to develop their joint factory park there, according to Seoul’s Unification Ministry.