Belarus yesterday forced a Ryanair flight, with an important leader of the opposition on board, to land in Minsk. It concerned the critical journalist Roman Protasevich. He had been wanted by the Belarusian authorities for some time.
The journalist has been arrested and now faces the death penalty.
Unacceptable
Outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte finds it ‘unacceptable and unprecedented’ that a Ryanair flight from Greece to Lithuania was forced to land in Belarus, so that a journalist could be disembarked and arrested there.
NATO called the action “a serious and dangerous incident.” “The Belarusian government must ensure the safe continuation of the journey for all travelers.” The United Nations said it was concerned.
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Bomb threat
A false bomb threat is believed to have been used by the Belarusian authorities for the emergency landing. All other passengers could leave the plane.
The plane was escorted by a Belarusian Air Force fighter. President Aleksandr Lukashenko is said to have personally ordered the Ryanair flight to be grounded.
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Nexta
Journalist Roman Protasevich is the founder of the opposition channel Nexta on the messaging platform Telegram. The channel has more than two million members and reports, among other things, on the massive demonstrations against President Lukashenko’s regime.
It has ruled the former Soviet Republic with a heavy hand since 1994 and is said to have controlled the August elections by means of fraud.
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