Opposition leader Roman Protasevich has been pardoned in Belarus. He was sentenced to eight years in prison earlier this month.
His case caused a worldwide sensation more than two years ago. A Ryanair Boeing with Protasevich on board was forced to land at Minsk airport by authorities in May 2021.
There, the former editor-in-chief of the Polish news channel Nexta – which opposes the authoritarian-dictatorial regime of ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka – and his girlfriend were taken off the plane.
Boeing escorted to Minsk by fighter jet
According to an expert, the pilots had no choice. “If the Ryanair flight is ordered to Minsk, it must land there,” air safety adviser John Cox said at the time. “You don’t start a discussion with a MiG-29.”
Protasevich was accused of organizing mass riots, preparing attacks against public order and calling for sanctions against Belarus.
Source: Krone
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