EU calls for immediate release of Belarus protest leader Kolesnikova

- The European Union has called for the immediate release of Belarus protest leader Maria Kolesnikova after she was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Kolesnikova and her fellow oppositionist Maxim Znak, who got 10 years, were tried behind closed doors on unfounded charges, a spokesperson of the EU's executive Commission said on Monday.

"The EU deplores the continuous blatant disrespect by the Minsk regime of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Belarus," the spokesperson said in a statement, adding the EU would continue its efforts to promote accountability for the brutal repression by the Belarusian authorities.