{"id":190370,"date":"2026-06-03T12:53:58","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T09:53:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/190370\/"},"modified":"2026-06-03T12:53:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T09:53:59","slug":"political-trials-arrests-searches-reported-in-belarus","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/190370\/","title":{"rendered":"Political trials, arrests, searches reported in Belarus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

June 3, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>Sources in Belarus reported new arrests, searches, criminal cases, trials, allegations of torture and instances of digital censorship between May 30 and June 2 as the regime continues to persecute its opponents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below is Pozirk\u2019s<\/em> recap of developments over these four days:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         Catholic activist Alaksandar Barana\u016d was convicted over alleged links to the now defunct Bie\u0142aruski Hajun project that monitored military activity in Belarus, Chry\u015bcijanskaja Vizija reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         The Supreme Court on June 2 heard appeals by civil society activists convicted in their absence on January 22. Alena \u017dyla\u010dkina (\u017dyvah\u0142od), Zaryna Sarokina, Cimafiej Ma\u0142acho\u016dski and Alieh Davyd\u010dyk were given prison terms of eight to 10 years. The Supreme Court upheld the sentence for Sarokina. The outcome of the hearing for the other defendants was not immediately known. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         Ihar Sutyrka, a former officer of the Committee for State Security (KGB), was arrested and charged with high treason. He was arrested on April 10, soon after he came back to Belarus from Poland, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         A Lithuanian was arrested near Pastavy, Viciebsk region, during a religious service of a local community of Russian Orthodox Old Believers, for allegedly leading the service without permission from Belarusian authorities, Viciebskaja Viasna reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         The KGB conducted more than 30 searches targeting the homes of exiled opposition and civil society activists. Many of the searches were apparently linked to events staged in Warsaw, Bialystok, Vilnius and the United States at the end of March to celebrate the 108th anniversary of the proclamation of the independence of the Belarusian People\u2019s Republic (Freedom Day), Viasna reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         Belarusian police raided the homes of people in Belarus with alleged links to Vilnius-based European Humanities University (EHU) following its recent designation as an \u201cextremist\u201d group. Authorities are threatening relatives of EHU students with criminal charges if they fail to persuade the students to withdraw from their studies, rights defenders noted, Viasna reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         The information ministry designated several accounts as \u201cextremist\u201d content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         Political prisoner Natalla Ma\u0107viejeva, who is serving a 14-year term, is facing constant maltreatment and pressure at Penal Colony No. 4 in Homiel, including punitive confinement, incommunicado detention, malnourishment and the threat of a new criminal case for allegedly violating prison rules, Viasna reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         Belarus is harassing, intimidating and arresting Lithuanian nationals on political grounds, Lithuanian State Security Department chief Remigijus Bridikis told the NATO Parliamentary Assembly\u2019s Democracy and Security Committee in Vilnius.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022         Belarusian human rights defenders declared 20 more individuals as political prisoners, taking their total to 874.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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