| Submit your comments on this article | |
| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia | |
| Belarus: More than 100,000 protest as 'masked snatch squads pull students into vans' | |
| 2020-09-07 | |
Around 30 students were dragged off the streets by snatch squads on Saturday, Russian news agency TASS reported, citing Minsk police, with further protesters believed to have been detained by the masked agents on Sunday. The interior ministry of Belarus said 91 people in total were detained on Saturday. At least 100 protesters have been detained across the country on Sunday, Russia's Interfax news agency reports, citing the ministry. Protests have taken place over several days. Draped in red-and-white opposition flags, students staged demonstrations in several locations across the capital, including outside the Minsk State Linguistic Institute, where police arrested five people on Friday, local media footage showed. It was on Saturday that masked men dragged away protesting students who had gathered at a restaurant in Karl Marx Street in the centre of Minsk - prompting thousands of women to later hold a separate march through the city in the afternoon, shouting "hands off the children" as one of their slogans. Related: Minsk: 2020-08-28 Libyan Embassy in Belarus Attacked by 30 GNA goons Minsk: 2020-08-27 In a shift, Belarus leader seeks to stem protests gradually Minsk: 2020-08-23 Lukashenko says he will close Belarus factories that are seeing protests Related: Alexander Lukashenko: 2020-09-04 Lukashenko says Belarus deployed half of its army along western border Alexander Lukashenko: 2020-09-04 Belarusian leader Lukashenko replaces heads of KGB and security council: Belta Alexander Lukashenko: 2020-08-28 Putin says Russia is ready to offer security help to Belarus | |
| Posted by:Fred |