Thousands of people protest after Lukashenko ‘landslide’ in Belarus election

Police and protesters have clashed in the capital of Belarus and other cities after a contested presidential election.

Authoritarian Alexander Lukashenko, who is seeking a sixth term in office, was on track to win the election on Sunday night, with the country’s elections commission saying partial results showed him with more than 90% in some districts.

However, there is widespread suspicion that the election was not fair, with two opposition candidates denied places on the ballot before one of them was jailed and the other fled to Russia.

The main opposition candidate, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, was targeted during the weekend: eight members of her staff were arrested and one of her aides fled the country.

Ms Tsikhanouskaya, a former teacher and wife of a jailed opposition blogger, had received large displays of support leading up to the election – unusual in a country where dissent is rarely tolerated.

But opposition supporters said they expected election officials would manipulate the election results in favour of Mr Lukashenko, 65.

After the vote on Sunday, thousands of protesters gathered in Minsk where police used truncheons to beat them and flash-bang grenades in an effort to get them to leave. Protesters tried to build barricades with rubbish bins.

source:news.sky.com