EU introduces new sanctions against Belarus for internal repressions

The Council of the EU introduced restrictive measures against another 28 people for their role in internal repressions and human rights violations in Belarus.

This was reported in the Council of the EU.

Restrictive measures were introduced against two deputy heads of the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption (GUBEZiK) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. GUBEZIK is one of the main bodies responsible for political persecution in Belarus, including arbitrary and illegal arrests and ill-treatment, including torture, of activists and members of civil society.

The lists also include various members of the judiciary, namely prosecutors and numerous judges who have handed down politically motivated sentences, including against citizens who protested the rigging of the 2020 presidential election or simply expressed their opinion against the Lukashenko regime.

In addition, restrictive measures are also applied to the heads of various correctional institutions (prisons and pretrial detention centers).

A group of longtime supporters of Lukashenko, who benefited from the regime, were also sanctioned. Among them are the director general of the largest state information agency "Belarusian Telegraph Agency" (BelTA) Irina Akulovich, the host of the "Senat" TV program on the STV channel and the head of the Youth Council at the National Assembly of Belarus Nikita Rachilovsky, as well as the former head of Lukashenko's press service and the long-term director general of BelTA Dzmitry Zhuk.

"These propagandists of the regime willingly provided the Belarusian public with false information about the repressions carried out by the state authorities, spread disinformation produced by both the Belarusian and russian authorities, and contributed to inciting hatred against the democratic opposition and civil society," the EU Council said.

In general, EU restrictive measures against Belarus are currently applied to 261 individuals and 37 legal entities.

Those on the list today are subject to an asset freeze, and EU citizens and companies are prohibited from providing them with funds. Individuals are additionally subject to an entry ban, which prevents them from entering the territory of the EU or passing through it in transit.

These sanctions are adopted on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the rigging of the presidential election in August 2020.

We will remind you that previously Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia banned the entry of cars with Belarusian license plates.