English

Hundreds beaten up, arrested as riot police attack anti-Lukashenka protesters (2)

Dozens of people were beaten up and hundreds were arrested in an attack by riot police on anti-Lukashenka protesters in Minsk’s downtown Independence Square on Sunday night.

Several thousand demonstrators occupied the square following a march along Independence Avenue, Minsk’s main thoroughfare, and attempted to storm the House of Government, breaking several entrance doors, but were pushed back by riot police.

At least five opposition presidential candidates were eventually arrested.

Among those injured were journalists, including Ruslan Harbachow of gazetaby.com, Viktar Talochka of BelTA, Ales Piletski of Nasha Niva, Natallya Radzina of charter97.org, John Hill of The New York Times, and Anton Kharchenko and Viktor Filyayev, cameramen of the Russia Today channel.

Those arrested included Iryna Khalip of the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, Kanstantsin Lashkevich, a correspondent of the news portal tut.by, and, Vadzim Zamirowski, a phrotographer with the newspaper BelGazeta.