Belarus Arrests Couple Linked To President's Challenger Ahead Of Sunday Election

MINSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th August, 2020) A close ally of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, an election rival of Belarus's long-term president, was arrested on Friday together with his wife, an opposition spokeswoman told Sputnik.

"Andrei Smolenchuk was detained today together with his wife, Zhanna Myakish. They are being held at Minsk's Zavodsky district police department," Anna Krasulina said.

Tikhanovskaya's spokeswoman said she did not know the reason for their arrest but suggested it could be a "tactical maneuver."

She said Tikhanovskaya's allies had agreed to attend this Sunday's election as unofficial observers, opting for security in numbers.

"The [candidate's] most trusted people planned to go to polling places and monitor the election together on August 9 to make it harder to expel them," Krasulina explained.

The presidential campaign in Belarus has been marred by a wave of protests and arrests of opposition figures, leaving four candidates to challenge incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko, who is running for a sixth term.