All People Detained During Minsk Protests To Be Released Until 03:00 GMT - Sputnik Belarus

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th August, 2020) All people, who have been detained during the protests in Minsk, will be released from a pre-trial detention facility until 6:00 a.m. (03:00 GMT), Sputnik Belarus wrote in its Telegram-channel on Friday, citing Deputy Interior Minister Alexander Barsukov.

On late Thursday, media reported that detainees started to be released from the detention facility on Okrestin Street in Minsk. Some of the released people told reporters about police abuses.

On Sunday, Belarus held the presidential election.

According to the Belarusian Central Election Commission, incumbent Alexander Lukashenko secured his sixth term with over 80 percent of the vote. The country's opposition, which consolidated around presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, has challenged the election results, accusing the authorities of massive falsifications during the voting.

Since the announcement of the official results, opposition rallies have engulfed Belarusian cities, with security forces trying to put them down.