Latest news with #Minsk-born
Time of India
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Belarus frees US man jailed in opposition crackdown
FILE - Belarus frees US man jailed in opposition crackdown. (Photo: AP) Belarus said Thursday it had freed an opposition figure and naturalised US citizen jailed for trying to "seize power" from authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko , an allegation that Washington called bogus. Yuras Zyankovich , 47, was arrested in April 2021 during a crackdown on opposition figures opposed to Lukashenko's rule. He was sentenced to 11 years prison for "organising a conspiracy to seize power by unconstitutional means", a charge rights groups said was linked to his opposition work. Belarusian security services arrested tens of thousands of people in the wake of 2020 elections that saw strongman ruler Lukashenko return to power. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Brazilian Bikinis 2025 Expertinspector Click Here Undo Hundreds of them were beaten in custody. Zyankovich, a Minsk-born politician who later became a naturalised US citizen, was a prominent member of the now-banned Belarusian Popular Front party opposed to Lukashenko. "At the request of the US presidential administration, US citizen Yuras Zyankovich has been released," Lukashenko's press secretary told the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. US secretary of state Marco Rubio confirmed on Wednesday that Belarus had released a "wrongfully detained" US citizen, without naming him. There are at least 1,200 political prisoners including politicians and journalists still in Belarusian jails, according to human rights monitor Viasna.
Straits Times
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
US secures release from Belarus of Minsk-born American, US official says
US secures release from Belarus of Minsk-born American, US official says WASHINGTON - The United States has secured the release from Belarus of an American who was arrested three years ago in Moscow, a senior U.S. official told Reuters on Wednesday. Youras Ziankovich, a 47-year-old naturalized American who was born in Minsk and lives in Texas, was released across the border of Belarus into Lithuania and is on his way home, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In April 2021, Ziankovich was picked up while having lunch in Moscow. He was hooded, handcuffed and driven to Belarus, where he was tried in secret by a Minsk court and sent to prison for allegedly plotting a coup, sources have told Reuters in the past. The U.S. official said the Lithuanian government and the U.S. embassy in Lithuania played a role in securing the release of Ziankovich, who the U.S. considered wrongfully detained. U.S. President Donald Trump has made a concerted effort to bring back Americans held around the world, tasking U.S. special envoy Adam Boehler with much of the work. The official said Ziankovich was the 47th detainee released by a variety of countries around the world since Trump took office on January 20. The official said the release was a positive sign from the government of Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In addition, the official said an American who had been held in Kuwait was returning to the United States on Wednesday. Tony Holden was part of a group of 23 Americans detained in Kuwait and pardoned in March. Holden was in Kuwait as a military contractor and was detained on minor drug-related charges. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
