The United States’ strongly condemns the forced diversion of a plane between two EU Member States and the subsequent expulsion of journalist Raman Pratasevic [iš jo] and arrest in Minsk. We demand his immediate release, “Blinken said in a statement.
“This is shocking [autoritarinio Baltarusijos prezidento Aliaksandro] “The Lukashenko regime has endangered the lives of more than 120 passengers, including US citizens,” he said.
“Initial reports that Belarusian security services have been involved and that Belarusian military aviation has been used to accompany the plane are a matter of great concern and require a thorough investigation,” Blinken said.
Mr Blinken said in a statement that the United States supports “the people of Belarus who are striving for a free, democratic and prosperous future and their call for the regime to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
A Ryanair plane, which was supposed to land in Vilnius on Sunday at 1 pm, approached the Lithuanian border and suddenly turned towards Minsk and landed there.
The company said the liner had landed as Belarusian air dispatchers reported a potential security threat on the plane. This information was not confirmed during the inspection of the aircraft.
The Belarusian opposition says that this was done in order to arrest R. Pratasevičius, a Belarusian opposition activist and blogger who founded the plane, the founder of the Nexta information channel.
Lukashenko’s press service said on his Telegram that he had ordered the flight to be directed and ordered the escort of the Mig-29 fighter.
On Sunday evening, the plane returned from Minsk to Vilnius.
Pavel Latuška, a member of the presidium of the Belarusian Opposition Coordination Council and former Minister of Culture, stated that six people – two Belarusian and four Russian citizens – had not flown from Minsk to Vilnius on a Ryanair plane.
In October, Belarus declared Nexta an “extremist” channel and ordered it to be blocked.
Last year, the founders of Nexta, 22-year-old Sciapan Pucil and 26-year-old R. Pratasevich, were included by Belarus in the list of “persons involved in terrorist activities”.
Both of these bloggers living in Poland are posing as defendants in a criminal case over the mass unrest in Belarus. Their international search has been published. They are also accused of inciting social hatred against law enforcement officials.
Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Cichanouskaya and Nexta say Pratasevic may face the death penalty in Belarus.
The Nexta and Nexta Live channels are important voices in the Belarusian opposition and have helped mobilize protesters during unprecedented demonstrations that rocked the country following the disputed presidential election last August. Lukashenko, the Belarusian leader since 1994, has secured a sixth term there. The opposition and Western democracies see the elections as rigged.
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