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The arrests took place in connection with people who began gathering before tonight’s protests, Interfax reports. According to eyewitnesses, several police buses arrived in connection with the protesters who began to gather in the center of Minsk. Shortly afterwards, several people who were equipped with flags and symbols of the opposition were arrested.
The night is planned The demonstration is in support of the country’s political prisoners, according to the opposition Telegram channel Nexta Live, which has coordinated the demonstrations and has more than two million followers. According to Nexta, the authorities have opened more than 250 preliminary investigations against opposition politicians, activists, bloggers and ordinary people who demonstrated. At least 77 people remain in jail for purely political reasons, according to the human rights organization Vjasna.
“We have not forgotten them and we demand the freedom of all political prisoners!” writes Nexta.
Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Minsk in repeated protest marches since the highly questionable presidential elections on August 9.
On Friday, the United States and the European Union imposed new sanctions on Belarus, but not on its leader, Alexander Lukashenko, who is believed to have cheated to win the election. Belarus has responded by pointing to counter-sanctions, but without going into details.
