Belarus sentences opposition leader to 18 years

The court in Belarus on Tuesday found video blogger and activist Siarhei Tsikhanouski guilty of organizing mass unrest and inciting hatred against authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. Five other opposition activists also received prison sentences of 14 to 16 years.

What did Tsikhanouski do? The 43-year-old planned to challenge Lukashenko in the 2020 presidential election. Authorities detained him last May, two days after declaring his candidacy. His wife, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, ran in his place. Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory, but opposition and Western nations denounced the result as a sham. Lukashenko’s government cracked down on the resulting protests, detaining as many as 35,000 people. Tsikhanouskaya, who fled to Lithuania, said they would not stop the fight against the dictatorship.

Dig deeper: Listen to Jenny Lind Schmitt’s report on how Christians in Belarus have responded to the crackdown on dissent.