Belarus frees key opposition leader following rare visit from top US envoy

TALLINN, Estonia -- Belarus has freed Siarhei Tsikhanouski, a cardinal dissident fig and the hubby of exiled absorption person Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, pursuing a uncommon sojourn by a elder U.S. official, Tsikhanouskaya’s squad announced connected Saturday.

Tsikhanouski, a fashionable blogger and activistic who was jailed successful 2020, arrived successful Vilnius, Lithuania, alongside 13 different governmental prisoners, his wife's squad said. The merchandise came conscionable hours aft Belarusian authorities announced that authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko met with U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, successful Minsk.

A video published connected his wife's authoritative Telegram relationship showed Tsikhanouski disembarking a achromatic minibus, with a shaved caput and wide smile. He pulled Tsikhanouskaya into a agelong clasp arsenic their supporters applauded.

“My hubby is free. It's hard to picture the joyousness successful my heart,” Tsikhanouskaya told reporters. But she added her team's enactment is “not finished” portion implicit 1,100 governmental prisoners stay down bars successful Belarus.

Tsikhanouski was jailed aft announcing plans to situation Lukashenko successful the 2020 election. Following his arrest, his woman ran successful his stead, rallying ample crowds crossed the country. Official results of the predetermination handed Lukashenko his sixth word successful bureau but were denounced by the absorption and the West arsenic a sham.

As unprecedented protests broke retired successful the aftermath of the vote, Tsikhanouskaya near the state nether unit from the authorities. Her hubby was aboriginal sentenced to 19 1/2 years successful situation connected charges of organizing wide riots.

Other salient dissidents stay successful Belarusian jails, among them Nobel Peace Prize victor Ales Bialiatski, a quality rights advocator serving a 10-year situation condemnation connected charges wide denounced arsenic politically motivated. Also down bars is Viktor Babaryka, a erstwhile banker who was wide seen successful 2020 arsenic Lukashenko’s main electoral rival, and Maria Kolesnikova, a charismatic person of that year's wide protests.

Released alongside Tsikhanouski was longtime Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty analogous Ihar Karnei, the U.S. government-funded broadcaster confirmed. Karnei, who had besides worked with salient Belarusian and Russian newspapers, had been serving a three-year work connected extremism charges helium rejected arsenic a sham.

RFE/RL's Belarusian work had been designated extremist successful the country, a communal statement handed to anyone who criticizes Lukashenko's government. As a result, moving for it oregon spreading its contented has go a transgression offense.

“We are profoundly grateful to President Trump for securing the merchandise of this brave journalist, who suffered astatine the hands of the Belarusian authorities,” the broadcaster's CEO Stephen Capus said Saturday successful a property release.

Karnei was detained respective times portion covering the 2020 protests. Unlike galore of his colleagues, helium chose to enactment successful Belarus contempt the ensuing repression. He was arrested again successful July 2023, arsenic constabulary raided his flat seizing phones and computers.

Belarus besides freed an Estonian nationalist who had acceptable up an NGO to rise funds for Belarusian refugees. According to the Estonian Foreign Ministry, Allan Roio was detained past January, and sentenced to 6 1/2 years successful situation connected charges of establishing an extremist organization.