Belarus president claims journalist pulled from plane was plotting a ‘bloody rebellion’
The president of Belarus has said that the journalist pulled off a plane that was grounded in Minsk had been plotting a “bloody rebellion”.
Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko went on to accuse the West of starting a “hybrid war” against him, in his first public comments since the incident on Sunday.
The Ryanair plane, which was bound for Lithuania, was forced to land in Minsk after Belarus claimed a bomb threat to the aircraft.
“As we predicted, our ill-wishers from outside the country and from inside the country changed their methods of attack on the state,” Lukashenko told parliament.
“They have crossed many red lines and have abandoned common sense and human morals,” he said, referring to a “hybrid war” without explaining what he meant by the comment.
Belarus has been subject to EU and US sanctions since Lukashenko cracked down on pro-democracy protests after a disputed election last year.
The leader has been in power since 1994 and faced weeks of mass protests last year after he was declared the winner of a presidential election that his opponents said was rigged.
However, his decision to intercept the international airliner in Belarusian airspace and detain 26-year-old journalist Roman Protasevich has pushed countries to be louder with their opposition.
“I simply plead with all the international community… please, world, stand up and help, I beg you so much because they will kill him,” the journalist’s mother told Polish broadcaster TVN.
Belarus denies it mistreats detainees, despite human rights groups claiming they have documented hundreds of cases of abuse and forced confessions since last year.
Europe’s aviation regulator urged earlier today to avoid Belarus’ airspace for safety reasons. The European Union has been mulling sanctions.
Meanwhile, Western governments, including the UK, have told their airlines to avoid the skies above Belarus and have tabled plans to ban flights from the country.