Latest Belarus government News

Belarus raids apartments of opposition activists as part of sweeping probe called latest crackdown

Nov. 28, 2023 11:05 AM EST

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarus' criminal investigation agency said Tuesday that it has conducted raids as part of a sweeping probe into an alleged attempt by the opposition to seize power three years ago. Critics called it the latest move in authorities' crackdown on dissent. ...

Armenia's leader snubs meeting of Russia-dominated security grouping over a rift with the Kremlin

Nov. 23, 2023 14:40 PM EST

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian-dominated security grouping held a summit in Belarus on Thursday with the absence of one of its members, Armenia, which has been irked by what it sees as a lack of support over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Speaking at the meeting of the Collective Security...

More than 2,400 Ukrainian children taken to Belarus, a Yale study finds

Nov. 17, 2023 12:50 PM EST

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — More than 2,400 Ukrainian children aged 6-17 have been taken to Belarus from four regions of Ukraine that are partially occupied by Russian forces, a study by Yale University has found. The study, released Thursday by the Humanitarian Research Lab of the...

Belarus human rights activist goes on hunger strike in latest protest against Lukashenko government

Nov. 16, 2023 11:54 AM EST

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A human rights activist in Belarus on Thursday began a hunger strike inside prison in the latest protest against the repressive government of Alexander Lukashenko, a rights organization said. The Belarusian human rights organization Viasna said Aliaksandar...

Armenian leader snubs summit of Moscow-led security alliance

Nov. 14, 2023 06:22 AM EST

YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — Armenia's leader said Tuesday he would not take part in next week's summit of a Moscow-led security alliance, the latest in a series of moves suggesting a growing strain in relations with longtime ally Russia. A statement from the office of Prime Minister...

A teenager taken from occupied Mariupol to Russia will return to Ukraine, officials say

Nov. 10, 2023 14:16 PM EST

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Ukrainian and Russian officials on Friday reported reaching an agreement to bring a Ukrainian teenager taken to Russia amid the war last year back to his home country, in accordance with his wishes. Bohdan Yermokhin, a 17-year-old whose parents passed away...

Activist hands ICC evidence he says implicates Belarus president in transfer of Ukrainian children

Nov. 07, 2023 12:28 PM EST

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — An exiled Belarus activist on Tuesday presented a second dossier of evidence to the International Criminal Court that he said proves the personal involvement of President Alexander Lukashenko in the illegal transfer of children to Belarus from Russian-occupied towns...

Nobel peace laureate Bialiatski has been put in solitary confinement in Belarus, his wife says

Nov. 07, 2023 12:12 PM EST

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Nobel Peace Prize laureate and activist Ales Bialiatski has been transferred to solitary confinement at his prison in Belarus, his wife said Tuesday. Natalia Pinchuk told The Associated Press that prison authorities have toughened conditions for the...

Belarus sentences independent newspaper editor to 4 years in prison

Nov. 03, 2023 14:31 PM EDT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarusian authorities on Friday convicted the chief editor of a prominent independent regional newspaper of “discrediting the Republic of Belarus” and sentenced him to four years in prison, as the country continues its crackdown on dissent. A court in...

Belarusians who fled repression face new hurdles as they try to rebuild their lives abroad

Nov. 01, 2023 07:36 AM EDT

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Andrei, a 29-year-old computer programmer who fled to Germany from Belarus two years ago amid a harsh crackdown on political dissent, is facing a serious dilemma. His Belarusian passport has expired, along with his German residence permit. But Belarus has...