New York: United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday he was deeply concerned over the apparent forced landing of a commercial passenger jet over Belarus, and the subsequent detention of a prominent dissident and journalist by authorities there.
On Sunday, Roman Protasevich was flying on a Ryanair jet from Greece to Lithuania, where he has been reportedly living in exile since fleeing Belarus in 2019.
In the wake of the large-scale popular protests that erupted last August following the disputed presidential election, he was reportedly charged with inciting public disorder and social hatred by the government of President Alexander Lukashenko.
According to news reports, the jet was forced to land in Belarus, by a Belarusian military jet, following which, Protasevich together with his girlfriend, were arrested in Minsk, while three other passengers also left the plane.
"The Secretary-General is deeply concerned over the apparent forced landing of a passenger aircraft over Belarus on 23 May and the subsequent detention of Mr. Roman Protasevich, a Belarusian journalist on board," said a statement issued by the UN Chief's spokersperson.
The UN chief called for a full, transparent and independent investigation into this disturbing incident and urged all parties concerned to cooperate with the inquiry.
"He urges the Belarusian authorities to fully respect all its international human rights obligations, including in relation to the freedoms of expression, assembly and association," the spokesperson stated.
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