Six members of Russian punk group Pussy Riot were reportedly attacked by Cossacks while performing beneath a sign advertising the Winter Olympics 2014 in Sochi.

Two members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alekhina were released this week following an arrest for alleged theft.

However, controversy has intensified after Cossacks reportedly whipped five females and one male member, all of whom were wearing masks, during a performance.

"They hit me all across my body, look at my bruises," the Daily Star quotes Tolokonnikova as saying.

Reports have claimed that their masks were ripped off and a guitar was thrown into a rubbish bin.