At least 88 people detained in Belarus in “Gayun case”

Mass arrests in the «Gayun case»

Human Rights Centre «Vyasna» reported at least 88 detained Belarusians within the so-called «The Hayun affair» - criminal proceedings opened against citizens who may have been associated with the activities of the independent monitoring channel «Belarusian Gayun».

From the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, this Telegram channel collected and published data on the movement of Russian troops, aviation, equipment and logistics on the territory of Belarus.

According to human rights activists, most of the detentions took place in Gomel region, but arrests continue in other regions of the country.

What is known about Belarusian Hayun«

The Belarusian Hayun project became known in 2022 for its publications on Missile launches from the territory of Belarus, The channel has been widely used by the Russian media for its coverage of Russian military operations. The channel has gained wide international attention as a one of the few independent sources of information from inside the country, where Lukashenka's regime has full control over the media space.

Despite the anonymity of the authors, the Belarusian special services have repeatedly announced the «search for administrators» and accused the project of «extremist activities».

Human rights activists: the number of detainees may increase

Analysts at the Vyasna Centre note that The actual number of detainees may be much higher, as the wave of arrests continues.
According to their forecasts, the total number of defendants in the «Gayun case» may exceed one thousand people.

«The mass detentions are of a political nature. People are being persecuted for access to independent information and attempts to share facts about Russian troops,» Vyasna said.

International reaction

Belarusian human rights activists have already appealed to the UN and OSCE to condemn the new wave of repression. European diplomats emphasise that the arrests in the «Gayun case» could be one of the largest-scale repressions in Belarus after the 2020 protests.

The Ukrainian side also expressed support for Belarusians who oppose the Lukashenko regime's collaboration with Russia.