Poland Puts Sanctions On 365 Belarusians Over Journalist’s Jailing

Poland has imposed sanc­tions on a fur­ther 365 Belaru­sian cit­i­zens over the impris­on­ment of a jour­nal­ist of Pol­ish ori­gin in Belarus, the Inte­ri­or Min­istry said on May 29, amid ris­ing ten­sions between War­saw and Min­sk. Poland has been an impor­tant refuge for oppo­nents of author­i­tar­i­an Belaru­sian ruler Alyak­san­dr Lukashen­ka.

On May 26, a Belaru­sian court upheld an ear­li­er deci­sion to sen­tence jour­nal­ist Andrzej Poc­zobut to eight years in prison. Poc­zobut was jailed on charges of encour­ag­ing actions aimed at harm­ing the nation­al secu­ri­ty of Belarus, try­ing to reha­bil­i­tate Nazism, and incit­ing eth­nic hos­til­i­ty. Poland says the charges are unjust and polit­i­cal­ly moti­vat­ed.

To read the orig­i­nal sto­ry by Reuters, click here.