‘No-one is safe flying over Belarus’, says political adviser
A plane bound for Lithuania has been forcibly diverted while flying in Belarusian airspace.
Opposition journalist Roman Protasevich was on board the plane and was arrested when it landed in the country’s capital, Minsk.
Franak Viacorka, adviser to Belarus opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and friend of Mr Protasevich, said it showed the risk of flying over the country.
“Lukashenko’s regime is using all possible ways in order to persecute opponents, journalists, activists,” Mr Viacorka told BBC World News.
Western countries have condemned the action by Belarus, which said it scrambled a fighter jet to force the plane to land because of a bomb threat.