Belarus jails activist’s girlfriend for six years

The Russian fiancée of a Belarusian dissident who was imprisoned alongside him when their plane was forced to land in Minsk was sentenced to six years in prison on Friday, according to a rights group.

Sofia Sapega, 24, and Roman Protasevich, a Belarusian opposition activist, were arrested in May 2021 when their Ryanair flight from Greece to Lithuania was grounded as it crossed over Belarus.

Sapega, a Russian citizen, faced seven criminal charges including “inciting social hatred” and “violence or threats” against police.

Following a closed-door trial, a court in Belarus sentenced Sapega to six years, rights group Vyasna said.

After her arrest, Sapega cooperated with authorities and appealed to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko for her release.

Protasevich fled to Europe in 2019 from where he co-ran the Nexta Telegram channels, a key Belarus opposition media that helped mobilize protesters during historic rallies against the disputed re-election of Lukashenko in 2020.

Protasevich and Sapega also featured in “confession” recordings after their detention, which their supporter’s claims were recorded under duress and are a regular method used by the dictatorship to pressure dissidents.

Protasevich is currently detained in Belarus, awaiting trial.