A court in Belarus placed a man from the northern city of Novopolotsk in administrative arrest for 15 days for taking a photo of himself while on vacation in Georgia in 2021 against the backdrop of the Georgian and Ukrainian flags. He was charged with unauthorized picketing, the Viasna human rights center reported, adding that the photo was posted on social media on August 8, 2021, but the police only noticed it this year. The man, whose identity was not revealed, admitted taking the photo but said it was not a protest gesture since Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine started in February 2022. To read the original story by Current Time, click here.
Editors' Picks
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.
To find out more, click here.