The controversial Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has threatened protesters with harsh words. „If someone touches a member of the military, he must at least go away without his hands,“ Lukashenko said on TV today. Nevertheless, hundreds again demonstrated against the head of state before the weekend. Since Monday, the opposition has been trying to force Lukashenko to resign by calling for general strikes.
Since the controversial re-election of Lukashenko on August 9th, there have been regular mass protests in Belarus. The opposition accuses him of electoral fraud, which he rejects. More than 16,000 people have already been arrested. United Nations investigators have reported beatings and torture and the West has imposed new sanctions. Lukashenko, backed by Russia, has been in power for 26 years.
