#HumanitarianCrisis #Regime
Authoritarian government in #Belarus uses bomb threat to divert a plane and arrest an opposition blogger in exile
On 23 May 2021, a #Ryanair flight from Athens, Greece to Vilnius, Lithuani was forced to perform an emergency landing in Minsk, located in Belarus, after the #Belarus ATC claomed that there was a 'bomb threat' on board.
By doing so, the Belarus police arrested a pro-democracy activist-in-exile #RomanProtasevich, who was a former editor of the Telegram channels #Nexta and Nexta Live.
Protasevich was wanted in Belarus for being critical of and having organized a protest in 2020 against the authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko.
The Lukashenkoās authoritarian government has launched a broad crackdown on opposition leaders and independent media. All editors at Nexta who mostly live in exile have said they have been threatened with extraordinary rendition in the past.
The Polish prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, said the plane had been āhijackedā and accused Lukashenko of a āreprehensible act of #StateTerrorismā.
In a joint statement, the US, Ireland, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and the Czech Republic condemn Lukashenko's action as āan act of piracyā: āThis act of state terror and kidnapping is a threat to all those who travel in Europe and beyond. It cannot be allowed to stand."
Protasevich was reportedly trembling on the plane, telling a fellow passenger that "Iām facing the death penalty here", as the plane was diverted to Belarus. His current whereabouts are unknown after being taken away by the Belarusian police.
It was confirmed that Lukashenko ordered his military to use a Mig-29 fighter to escort the plane.
Image: Twitter @franakviacorka
Source: The Guardian #May23
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/may/23/belarus-diverts-ryanair-plane-to-arrest-blogger-says-opposition
#Hijack #Kidnap #Military #PoliceState #Crackdown #ICAO #TelegramChannel
Authoritarian government in #Belarus uses bomb threat to divert a plane and arrest an opposition blogger in exile
On 23 May 2021, a #Ryanair flight from Athens, Greece to Vilnius, Lithuani was forced to perform an emergency landing in Minsk, located in Belarus, after the #Belarus ATC claomed that there was a 'bomb threat' on board.
By doing so, the Belarus police arrested a pro-democracy activist-in-exile #RomanProtasevich, who was a former editor of the Telegram channels #Nexta and Nexta Live.
Protasevich was wanted in Belarus for being critical of and having organized a protest in 2020 against the authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko.
The Lukashenkoās authoritarian government has launched a broad crackdown on opposition leaders and independent media. All editors at Nexta who mostly live in exile have said they have been threatened with extraordinary rendition in the past.
The Polish prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, said the plane had been āhijackedā and accused Lukashenko of a āreprehensible act of #StateTerrorismā.
In a joint statement, the US, Ireland, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and the Czech Republic condemn Lukashenko's action as āan act of piracyā: āThis act of state terror and kidnapping is a threat to all those who travel in Europe and beyond. It cannot be allowed to stand."
Protasevich was reportedly trembling on the plane, telling a fellow passenger that "Iām facing the death penalty here", as the plane was diverted to Belarus. His current whereabouts are unknown after being taken away by the Belarusian police.
It was confirmed that Lukashenko ordered his military to use a Mig-29 fighter to escort the plane.
Image: Twitter @franakviacorka
Source: The Guardian #May23
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/may/23/belarus-diverts-ryanair-plane-to-arrest-blogger-says-opposition
#Hijack #Kidnap #Military #PoliceState #Crackdown #ICAO #TelegramChannel
the Guardian
Belarus accused of āhijackingā Ryanair flight diverted to arrest blogger
Roman Protasevich is wanted for organising last yearās protests against Alexander Lukashenko