Minsk police started shooting at a protest action

Roman Lashkevich, a spokesman for the Municipal Department of Internal Affairs of the Minsk City Executive Committee, told RIA Novosti that the shots were warning shots, and the police had to shoot as the protesters threw stones at their vehicles.

“Several warning shots were fired with rubber bullets into the air after an aggressive part of the crowd started throwing stones at the transport of law enforcement officers”, - Lashkevich said.

According to the agency's correspondent, who is at the scene, not only shots, but also claps, similar to those heard during the explosion of stun grenades, were heard after a crowd of thousands of demonstrators approached the cordon of power structures on Partizansky Prospekt and moved towards city center.

One of the protesters was detained - he came too close to the cordon soldiers. Traffic is blocked on the streets adjacent to the avenue. At the same time, it is impossible to leave Partizansky Avenue - the police will not let anyone outside it, not even media representatives.

Let us remind you that today there are already traditional mass protests against the results of the presidential elections, according to which Belarus was once again headed by Alexander Lukashenko. Security measures have been strengthened in the capital of the republic, security forces and special equipment have been pulled into the center of Minsk. There is no mobile internet connection in the entire city.

Earlier, in response to the "people's ultimatum" put forward by the former opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who is in Lithuania, Lukashenko refused to leave his post and release political prisoners. Then a nationwide strike began in the country. Lukashenka threatened the participants of the protest actions to “tear off their hands”. He added that students participating in the protests should be expelled from the university, and teachers should be fired.