A Belarusian courtroom has opened the trial of dissident journalist Román Protasévich who's accused of organizing mass unrest and fascinating in plots to overthrow the federal government, amongst different fees.
He was detained in Might 2021 when Belarussian jets compelled a Ryanair flight he was on from Greece to Lithuania to land in Minsk.
Protasévich was arrested on touchdown and pleaded responsible quickly afterwards in a video broadcast on state TV. His household and numerous consultants consider this was executed below duress.
Protasévich's Russian girlfriend, Sofia Sapega, who was arrested together with him, was sentenced final 12 months to 6 years in jail on fees of inciting social hatred.
The US and the EU have denounced the flight's diversion as a "hijacking" and responded by introducing painful sanctions towards Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's authorities.
Protasévich based and ran the favored 'Nexta' channel on the Telegram messaging app, which was extensively utilized by contributors in mass protests in Belarus towards the re-election of President Lukashenko in 2020.
Protasévich faces fees alongside two former Nexta colleagues who're overseas and will probably be tried in absentia. If convicted, he faces as much as 15 years in jail.
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