Rights group says security services in Belarus raid apartments and detain election observers

By YURAS KARMANAU
Associated Press

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A local human rights center says security services in Belarus are breaking into apartments and detaining people in their workplaces as they carry out hundreds of searches among election observers ahead of next year’s vote. It’s the latest crackdown against human rights and democracy figures in Belarus ahead of parliamentary and local elections scheduled for February. Activists’ phones are reportedly being checked and they are forced to sign warnings against “promoting extremist activities.” Rights group Viasna calls the searches the latest attack on civil society and authorities’ “revenge” for independent election observation work in the 2020 elections.