MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th December, 2020) Belarusian police have arrested 271 people attending the Sunday anti-government rallies across the country, the Ministry of the Interior said on Monday.
"A total of 271 people were detained into pre-trial custody on administrative charges over violations of law on mass events," the ministry said in a press release on its website.
Noting a "continuous decrease in the protest activity," the ministry said around 1,000 people attended Sunday rallies nationwide this weekend, most of them in Minsk, Belarus' capital.
"In various parts of the capital, protesters were gathering in groups of up to 50 people. Law enforcement officers repeatedly warned them against violating the law on mass events and detained the most aggressive persons," the press release read.
According to the ministry, some instances of unlawful action were detected "on transport infrastructure objects," such as unidentified people throwing around metal nails on the road and planting an explosive device props on a railroad, causing a forced stop of a train.
Mass opposition protests have been ongoing in Belarus since the August 9 presidential election in which the incumbent leader, Alexander Lukashenko, secured his sixth consecutive term. The opposition has refused to recognize the official results and continues holding rallies.
Marches of the Belarusian opposition on weekends have become a signature feature of the post-electoral protests. Sunday rallies are traditionally the largest, held in Minsk and other cities and normally resulting in multiple arrests.
Over the past few weeks, the format of protests in Minsk has changed � instead of calling one massive rally across the city center, protesters gather for smaller demonstrations scattered across the city's residential areas. Police and security forces with special equipment are normally being deployed to these spots in the morning of the protest day.
