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A woman stands with a poster reading ‘Where is Roman [Protasevich]?!’ in the arrival area as passengers disembark from a Ryanair passenger plane from Athens
(Petras Malukas/AFP via Getty Images)
European leaders are to discuss imposing possible sanctions on Belarus after a journalist opposing the country’s president Alexander Lukashenko was arrested when the Ryanair passenger jet carrying him and more than 120 passengers was forced to land in Minsk, following an alleged bomb threat.
With the presidency having said Mr Lukashenko personally sent a fighter jet to to escort the plane as it travelled from Greece to Lithuania, UK foreign affairs committee chair Tom Tugendhat and his counterparts in the US, Germany and several other European nations denounced the incident as “an act of state terrorâ€.
As some called for all flights to avoid Belarusian airspace on Monday morning, a university in Vilnius said one of its students, 23-year-old Sofia Sapega, believed to have been travelling onboard with Roman Protasevich – who reportedly fears the death penalty could await him in Belarus – had also been detained after the plane was grounded.
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Senior politicians call for international probe and denounce ‘act of state terror’
In a joint statement yesterday, the chairs of parliamentary foreign affairs committees in the UK, US, Lithuania, Germany, Ireland, Czech Republic, Poland, Estonia and Latvia condemned what they called an “act of state terrorâ€.
Calling for an immediate inquiry by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, they said: “Until ICAO has reported, we call for Belarus to be suspended from the organisation and a ban on all overflight of Belarus including flights to and from the country.
“It is clear that the current administration in Minsk has no respect for the safety of our citizens and cannot be trusted to defend their rights. This act of state terror and kidnapping is a threat to all those who travel in Europe and beyond. It cannot be allowed to stand.â€
They called for sanctions to be placed on Belarus and for the immediate release of the detained journalist Roman Protasevich.
Andy Gregory24 May 2021 08:34
Vilnius university says student Sofia Sapega also detained in Minsk
A Belarusian university in Vilnius said its student Sofia Sapega, 23, has also been detained in Minsk and is demanding her release.
The detention of Ms Sapega – a Master’s student who the university said had been on holiday in Greece with journalist Roman Protasevich – was confirmed by her family, the European Humanities University (EHU) told Reuters.
A Lithuanian passenger, who gave his name only as Mantas, said that upon on hearing the news the plane was being diverted, Mr Protasevich pulled a laptop and a phone from the overhead locker and gave them to a female companion. On landing, Mr Protasevich was immediately separated, Mantas said.
Ms Sapega, who is a Russian citizen, was flying to Vilnius to defend her Master’s thesis at the university to graduate from her five-year course, the university said in a statement.
“As a result of a cover operation by the Belarusian authorities, the student was detained by the Administration of the Investigative Committee for the city of Minsk on groundless and made-up conditions,†the statement said.
“We protest against the unjustified detention of the member of EHU community,†it added.
Andy Gregory24 May 2021 08:25
Simon Calder: Ryanair ‘hijack’ could have serious consequences for Belarus
With international outcry growing this morning, our veteran travel correspondent Simon Calder believes there could be serious implications for Belarus:
Andy Gregory24 May 2021 08:14
Lukashenko critic held after Ryanair flight diverted to Belarus in ‘attack on democracy’
For those of you just catching up on this story now, here’s our report from Sunday evening:
Andy Gregory24 May 2021 08:11
Good morning, we’ll be using this liveblog to follow the latest developments after a Ryanair passenger jet carrying a dissident journalist was dramatically grounded in Minsk.
Andy Gregory24 May 2021 08:08
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