Protests in Belarus. Clashes with the militia and arrests

Clashes took place, among others, near the obelisk of “Minsk-Hero City”
There are alarming recordings on social media showing the police beating up protesters
More than 40 journalists from Belarus and the Russian media were detained during protests in various cities in Belarus
At the request of the authorities, the speed of mobile internet in Minsk has been reduced, now it is supposed to work normally
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More than 250 people have been detained during protests in various cities in Belarus, the “Wiasna” human rights center reported. The list of detainees was published on the website of “Wiasny”.

The vast majority of people were detained in Minsk, but there were also detentions in Brest, Vitebsk, Mogilev, Grodno, Mołodeczno, Żłobin, Kobryń and Bobruisk.

Many detained – over 40 people – are journalists. Some of them have already been released.

Meanwhile, the Belarusian mobile internet operator A1 informed on Twitter that access to its services has already been fully restored. Previously, the speed of mobile internet in Minsk was limited for several hours – according to the operator, at the request of state authorities.

All metro stations closed during protests have also been opened in the capital.

The injured people were dressed in civilian clothes. In turn, the Russian TASS agency reported that the militia used bang grenades and water cannons with colored water to mark the protesters.

Natalla Hanusiewicz, a spokeswoman for the Minsk militia, confirmed that several dozen people were detained in Minsk. Hanusiewicz also admitted that water cannons and stun grenades were used against the protesters in Minsk.

Belarusian media reported that at one point at the monument “Minsk – city-hero”, the commander of the Minsk OMON forces, Dzmitry Balaba, covered by EU sanctions, appeared at the monument and tried to give a television interview, but he was surrounded by demonstrators who chanted “Get out of here!”

Witnesses claim that some of the injured are law enforcement officers. Doctors helped the wounded.

In the recordings and photos that appear on the web, we can see very brutal scenes. Protesters are beaten by the police, chained and held in spite of bloody faces.

More than 40 journalists, including Belsat TV, were detained on Sunday before and during protests in various cities of the country, according to data collected by the independent Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAŻ).

Most reporters – 25 people – were detained in Minsk. Among them were four journalists from the Russian state agency TASS – three were arrested twice, each time released without a protocol.

Among other detainees in the capital were journalists from the BiełaPAN agency, the online newspaper Nasza Niwa and the periodical “Nowy Czas”, portals TUT.by and Onliner, the weekly “Belorusy i Rynok”, the daily “Komsomolskaya Pravda in Belarus”. A correspondent of the Russian RIA-Novosti agency and three journalists of the Belarusian state agency BelTA were also detained.

Five journalists have been detained in Grodno, four of whom have already been released, and four in Vitebsk, including two from Belsat TV – Zmitsier Kazakiewicz and Vyacheslav Lazarau.

Other cities where journalists were detained were Mogilev, Gomel and Brest.

A group of hackers in support of the Belarusian protest, which describes themselves as “cyberpartisans”, reported that it had hacked the websites of the Belarusian state-owned company Belnaftakhim, the Minsk automobile plant MAZ and the Federation of Trade Unions.

Cyber partisans reported that the state website of the Federation of Trade Unions called for joining independent trade unions and participating in demonstrations. Information from the Telegram channel of Swiatłana Cichanouska’s presidential elections in August was also published there.

“We will show that two months of fighting and all the sacrifices were not in vain. We will not give up! They will not deceive us! We will press him! Long live Belarus!” – posted on the cyberpartyzantów ‘website.

As added, on the websites of MAZ and Belnaftachim, strikes were called. The website of the national archive was also hacked.

Also on the website of the meteorological services, information about good weather was posted and called for protests.

Cyber partisans are an anonymous group of hackers that supports the Belarusian protest. So far, they have broken into e.g. to the website of the Belarusian Interior Ministry, where they published information about the search for Alyaksandr Lukashenka by arrest warrant.

The Nasza Niwa portal announced on Sunday that the administrators of regional chats on the Telegram website began to be detained in Grodno. On Friday, nine such people were detained on the basis of an article about the organization and preparation of actions that violate public order or active participation in such actions.