|
2021-05-24 Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
|
|
Belarus Forces Down Plane to Seize Dissident; Europe Sees 'State Hijacking'
|
[NYTIMES] The strongman president of Belarus sent a fighter jet to intercept a European airliner traveling through the country’s airspace on Sunday and ordered the plane to land in the capital, Minsk, where a prominent opposition journalist aboard was then seized, provoking international outrage.
The stunning gambit by Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, a brutal and erratic leader who has clung to power despite huge protests against his government last year, was condemned by European officials, who compared it to hijacking. It underscored that with the support of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, Mr. Lukashenko is prepared to go to extraordinary lengths to repress dissent.
The Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius, Lithuania, carrying some 170 passengers — among them the journalist, Roman Protasevich, 26 — was flying over Belarus when Belarusian air traffic controllers notified its pilots of "a potential security threat on board" and directed the plane to divert to Minsk, the Ireland-based airline said in a statement.
|
Posted by Fred 2021-05-24 00:00||
||
Front Page|| [9 views ]
Top
File under: Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
|
|
20:47 SteveS
20:34 Lord Garth
19:56 swksvolFF
19:51 Procopius2k
19:04 M. Murcek
19:03 Frank G
19:01 M. Murcek
18:56 SteveS
18:51 SteveS
18:25 Ululating Platypus
18:22 Lord Garth
17:54 Gliling tse Tung9582
16:49 Abu Uluque
16:35 Procopius2k
16:31 Procopius2k
16:29 Procopius2k
16:27 Procopius2k
16:21 Dale
16:00 Tom
15:55 jpal
15:53 Tom
15:49 Grom the Reflective
15:48 jpal
15:46 jpal
|
