Belarus targets rights activists, journalists with raids

Authorities in Belarus have raided offices and homes of dozens of human rights activists and journalists

KYIV, Ukraine -- Authorities in Belarus on Wednesday raided offices and homes of dozens of human rights activists and journalists in a crackdown that comes just a day after the country's authoritarian president promised to “deal with” non-governmental organizations he accuses of fomenting unrest. Law enforcement officers raided the homes of several advocates at the prominent Viasna human rights center, as well as offices of other Belarusian NGOs and homes of activists and journalists in various regions of the ex-Soviet state. More than 40 raids took place all across the country. “The most massive assembly line of repressions in the country's modern history has been activated in Belarus,” Andrei Bastunets, head of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, told The Associated Press after the group's office in Minsk was raided on Wednesday morning.