Belarus

Belarus

Two years after Belarus election, 'torch of freedom' still burning

The 9 August 2020 elections -- believed to have been rigged by strongman President Alexander Lukashenko -- sparked unprecedented protests, leading to a crackdown against opponents of the regime and tens of thousands of arrests.

09/08/2022

Belarus

UN aviation agency blames Belarus for Ryanair plane diversion

The body said that "senior Belarusian officials" had sent a "deliberately false" bomb threat to aircraft to divert it to Minsk and arrest a dissident journalist.

20/07/2022

Belarus

Belarusian journalist sentenced to more than eight years in prison

The 28-year-old was already serving a two-year sentence for reporting on opposition demonstrations in 2020.

13/07/2022

My Europe Series

Belarusians fighting for Ukraine to keep hopes alive of change at home

“If Ukraine loses against Russia, then the freedom of Belarus stands no chance.”

05/07/2022

Belarus

Belarus abolishes visa requirements for Polish citizens for six months

Minsk says the decision aims to foster "good neighbourly" relations amid heightened tensions.

01/07/2022

Belarus

Jailed Russian partner of Belarus dissident asks Lukashenko for pardon

Sapega was sentenced in May to six years in prison for "inciting social hatred" and "violence and threats".

27/06/2022

Belarus

Tsikhanouskaya: EU candidacy for Moldova and Ukraine will set example

The Belarusian opposition leader told Euronews that no one deserves EU candidacy status more than Ukraine.

22/06/2022

Belarus

Belarus president changes death penalty law to target opposition

Belarus is the last country in Europe still to apply the death penalty, executing several people each year by firing squad.

18/05/2022

Belarus

Ryanair plane diversion: Journalist's girlfriend gets 6-year jail term

Sofia Sapega and Protasevich were arrested in 2021 after their flight from Athens to Vilnius was diverted by a Belarusian MiG-29 fighter jet to Minsk.

06/05/2022

Belarus

'I feel it's dragged on': Lukashenko on Russia's war in Ukraine

Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko has been talking about the war in Ukraine and the use of nuclear weapons in the conflict.

05/05/2022

Belarus

Belarus' first president Stanislav Shushkevich dies aged 87

Shushkevich is best known for informing Mikhail Gorbachev about the end of the Soviet Union and leading Belarus to independence.

04/05/2022

Belarus

Belarus accuses Poland border guards about slingshot incident

Polish security forces allegedly tried to "blind the Belarusian border guards with strobe lights".

11/04/2022

Belarus

Belarus arrests four for trying to sabotage railway links to Ukraine

Minsk has claimed that officers shot and injured the suspects because they had tried to "resist arrest".

06/04/2022

Belarus

Girlfriend of Belarusian journalist Roman Protasevich goes on trial

Sofia Sapega and Roman Protasevich were arrested in May 2021 while flying from Athens to Viulnius.

28/03/2022

Belarus

US man wanted over Capitol riots is 'granted asylum in Belarus'

Evan Neumann fled the United States last year after being charged for his role in the storming of the Capitol building.

23/03/2022

Belarus

Belarus expels majority of Ukrainian diplomats and embassy staff

Kyiv has accused Minsk of preparing to send its own troops into Ukraine following Russia's invasion.

23/03/2022

Belarus

Nasha Niva: Belarusian journalists jailed in latest media crackdown

The independent newspaper was blocked by Belarus in July and banned as an "extremist" entity in November.

16/03/2022

Belarus

We want to stop Belarusian troops fighting in Ukraine — Tsikhanouskaya

Exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya told Euronews she wants to mobilise women in Belarus to try to prevent husbands and sons being sent to Ukraine.

03/03/2022

Belarus

Belarus votes to ditch 'nuclear-free' status in disputed referendum

Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya told Euronews that the result was a "threat" to the whole of Europe.

28/02/2022

Belarus

Belarus-Russia joint drills to continue amid 'Ukraine border tensions'

It means that Russian troops will remain in Belarus, despite Moscow's promise that they would leave the country after the exercises which were due to end on Sunday.

20/02/2022

Belarus

'Democratic world must show its teeth' on Belarus, says Tsikhanouskaya

The Belarusian opposition leader told Euronews the regime in Minsk is 'hiding its domestic crisis' behind military drills with Russia and the threat to Ukraine.

19/02/2022

Belarus

Belarus ready to host 'nuclear weapons' in case of Western threat

Belarus had declared itself a nuclear-free zone after the break of the former Soviet Union in 1991.

17/02/2022

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Bulgaria: Honey pots form a candle crucifix.

Hundreds of honey pots lit by candles form a huge crucifix in the church of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria.

10/02/2022

Belarus

Skier flees Belarus for Poland after Winter Olympics ban

Her coach and father, Sergei Dolidovich, has been supportive of Belarus' opposition.

09/02/2022

Belarus

New U.S. sanctions for Belarus officials over crackdown on dissidents

The U.S. State Department said it was acting in support of figures like sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, who is now in Poland after avoiding repatriation over Belarus criticism at the 2021 Olympics.

04/02/2022

Belarus

Belarus will fight alongside Russia in event of war, says Lukashenko

Belarus' leader also said that in the event of a conflict with Ukraine: "Everyone will lose."

28/01/2022