Belarusian media group says RFE/RL journalist arrested
Feb 6, 2022, 1:14 PM | Updated: 1:32 pm
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The Belarusian Association of Journalists says police have arrested a photographer who worked for U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
The group said Sunday that Ulad Hrydzin had been taken to a pre-trial detention center in the capital Minsk, but that no information was available on charges against him and that his lawyer had not been able to meet with him.
Hrydzin had previously served 11 days in detention for filming one of the protest rallies that arose in 2020 against authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko after disputed election results gave him a sixth term in office.
Huge protests against Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, persisted for months, but dissipated under a harsh crackdown on dissent. More than 35,000 people were arrested, many of them beaten, and opposition figures either fled the country or were arrested.
RFE/RL could not immediately be reached for comment on the report of Hrydzin’s arrest.
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