Belarus: The US joined the EU Commission in condemning the forced landing of a Vilnius-bound Ryanair flight in Belarus, reportedly over a bomb threat, that resulted in the arrest of an editor of an opposition Telegram channel. In a statement on Sunday, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken demanded an international probe into the diversion of the Ryanair flight that made in emergency landing in Minsk shortly before leaving the Belarussian airspace due to reports of a bomb threat. After the plane landed, exiled editor of Belamova Telegram channel Roman Protasevich, who was on board, was arrested by the Belurussian authorities. Protasevich, who previously worked as editor-in-chief of Polish-based opposition Telegram channel Nexta Live, is wanted in Belarus on charges of inciting mass unrest as well as social enmity and discord. The accusations stem from mass anti-government protests that rocked Belarus in the wake of the August presidential election, which were extensively covered by Warsaw-based NEXTA.
NEXTA advocated for stronger anti-government action, сourting controversy for sharing unverified information that later proved to be fake. NEXTA has been designated an “extremist” organization in Belarus on par with Belamova, which was set up by popular blogger and US government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) consultant Igor Losik last year.
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