Lithuania appealed to the ICC to investigate alleged crimes of Lukashenko.
Lithuania appealed to the International Criminal Court to investigate alleged crimes against humanity by the regime of Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.
The Lithuanian Ministry of Justice reported that it is asking the court "to begin an investigation... of crimes... forced deportation, persecution of individuals, and other cruel behavior that contradicts basic norms of international law".
According to Alexander Lukashenko, who has been ruling Belarus since 1994, the 2020 Belarusian presidential election was rigged and he declared himself the winner without a democratic mandate from the citizens of his country, securing a sixth term.
Representatives of OSCE countries, including the USA, UK, EU countries, and Ukraine, stated that the Belarusian authorities violently dispersed peaceful protests across the country and illegally arrested and imprisoned thousands of Belarusians for exercising their rights.
Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who according to preliminary data received more votes in the 2020 election and is in exile in Lithuania, supported Lithuania's actions and stated that the crimes committed by Lukashenko's regime cannot go unpunished.
Source: Voice of America
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