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In Mogilev, Sobolevsky is known as one of the freelancers who collaborated with city online publications until 2020. Ales was sentenced twice for an administrative violation for a day, after which he was not released.
Freelance journalist from Pinsk, owner of the website and TikTok page “about Stolin”.
Alexander lived alone in Polesie for a long time, so his detention became known by chance. Concerned people became worried that he had not been in touch for a long time. It turned out that Alexander was placed in Brest pre-trial detention center-7. According to unverified information, he is charged with “assisting extremist activities.”
Alexander is also the father of the guy who “dismantled” the water cannon in Minsk during the 2020 protests.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs , the man made videos with incriminating evidence, showed them to local entrepreneurs and demanded money for “silence.” He also allegedly “promoted the activities of an extremist telegram channel whose administrators are located abroad.”
On May 28, 2024, the appeal was considered and the verdict entered into force.
Andrey Fomin is 29 years old, he hails from Mogilev, but lived in Minsk. The guy graduated from the Belarusian State Academy of Arts. In the video of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, he was forced to say that he was the editor and author of articles for the «Vestniki» newspaper network. According to information from activists of the ByProsvet initiative, Andrey did not have access to newspaper accounts and did not know those who distribute them in Belarus.
As a result, the guy was charged for participating in the March on August 30, 2020 and transferred to the pre-trial detention center-1. Andrey fundamentally did not want to leave his country, he is writing a book, six cats are waiting for him at home.
7 years of imprisonment in a penal colony.
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Sergei, an investigative journalist and editor of the Belarusian portal "Ezhednevnik" (ej.by), was detained on December 8, 2021, following a search and questioning by the Investigative Committee. He was charged with bribery and placed in pretrial detention. Sergei had previously been detained in connection with this case, from March 25 to April 4, 2020.
It later became known that he was also accused of “inciting hatred and discord” and “abuse of power or official authority.”
Human rights organizations assessed the prosecution as evidence of a political motive in the criminal prosecution of the journalist, aimed at forcing him to stop or change the nature of his activities in disseminating information about corruption.
According to Sergei's colleagues, the prosecution was motivated by his high-profile investigative journalism, primarily concerning large-scale corruption in the healthcare sector. Based on these findings, he reported on unprecedented kickbacks in the supply of expensive equipment, the purchase of an unregistered vaccine that was claimed to have been tested on Belarusian children, and the falsification of data on the spread of COVID-19 in Belarus. Moreover, according to him, these actions took place with the approval of the Ministry of Health.
In October 2023, Sergei was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.
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Igor is a journalist for Belsat TV. He previously worked for the newspaper "Belorusy i Rynok" (Belarusians and the Market) and the Belarusian service of Radio Svaboda. He has also published in Russian and Ukrainian publications. Together with his wife, journalist Ekaterina Andreyeva, he wrote the book "Belarusian Donbass," a study of the role of Belarusians in the war in eastern Ukraine.
He was first detained on July 16, 2021, during mass searches of independent journalists on charges of "organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate public order or actively participating in them." His apartment was searched, his equipment and books were seized, and he was then placed in a temporary detention facility. He was released on July 26.
In October 2024, news of his second arrest broke . Pro-government Telegram channels published a photo of Igor in handcuffs and a video in which he claimed he was being persecuted for an interview with media outlets deemed "extremist" in Belarus. Shortly before his arrest, in a commentary to the Dozhd TV channel, he noted that "Putin has embarked on a course of sharp escalation and is leading the country toward all-out war," while Lukashenko, in his opinion, "most likely does not want to participate directly in it, but is forced to face increasing pressure from the Kremlin."
In February 2025, Igor was charged with "discrediting Belarus" and "assisting extremist activity." The trial began on February 21 in Minsk. The court rejected the request for an independent expert examination, and on September 5 of that year, the journalist was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.
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Denis is a journalist and volunteer editor for the Belarusian version of InformNapalm, a freelance correspondent for Novaga Chas. His investigations touched on the influence of the "Russian world" on Belarus and Syria, construction in Kurapaty, and the transition of former Ukrainian Berkut officers to the Belarusian security forces.
In March 2021, he was detained by KGB officers on charges of "interfering with the activities of the police." Searches were conducted in his apartment, his mother's apartment, and his 95-year-old grandmother's apartment. In 2022, it became known that he was also accused of collaborating with Ukrainian intelligence.
In September 2022, Denis was convicted under articles on "treason" and "interference in the activities of an internal affairs officer", but the latter charge was later replaced with "illegal collection or dissemination of data about personal life".
In June 2023, he was transferred to a maximum security prison without notifying his family or lawyer.
In April 2024, the political prisoner was deprived of parcels, and sending vitamins now requires permission from the prison doctor.
As stated in the resolution, she was a language consultant for the Belsat television channel, which is recognized as an “extremist formation” in Belarus. According to the verdict, from June 19, 2021 to November 15, 2023, Anastasia Matyash was a language consultant for the Polish television "TVP", which includes the Polish television channel "BELSAT tv BELSAT". During her work, she allegedly conducted language consultations, translated, corrected and edited texts, which were then used on BELSAT. The resolution also states that for participation in “extremist activities” Anastasia Matyash allegedly received “criminal” income, 40,000 Polish zlotys, 12,258 dollars and 8,575 euros.
Anastasia Matyash did not admit her guilt.
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Evgeny Glushkov is a former Mogilev journalist who worked for city television in the 1990s and 2000s, after which he collaborated with several city portals.
Glushkov was detained in early January after refusing to open the door to security forces. He was dragged out into the street, still wearing the clothes he was wearing at home.
According to some reports , a criminal case has been opened against Glushkov for his journalistic activities. The suspected charge is Article 361-1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus (creation of or participation in an extremist group).
He was released in August 2026.
The 57-year-old man was hospitalized immediately after returning home. He was diagnosed with a trophic ulcer. Shortly before his release, Glushkov was also hospitalized.
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Borisov photographer who was detained on June 22, 2023. Security forces searched the house and took away computer equipment. After this, Zenkov was immediately taken to Minsk, where he was kept for some time in the temporary detention center on Akrestsin, and then transferred to pre-trial detention center No. 1.
As BAJ wrote , the photographer was detained in July 2020. In September, police officers came to Zenkov to “warn him about the inadmissibility of violating the law.”
Alexander Zenkov has worked as a freelance photographer since 1998, collaborating with regional independent publications.
On April 16, 2024, Alexander had a hearing of his appeal.
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Igor Korney was detained on July 17 in Minsk and arrested for 10 days, he was in the detention center on Okrestina. His home was searched. After 10 days of arrest, he was not released and transferred to a pretrial detention center.
Igor worked for a long time as a journalist for Radio Svaboda, is known as an essayist, author of texts about the cultural and historical heritage of Belarus, and a travel blogger. Soon after his arrest, Igor's family left the country.
According to the indictment, Igor actively wrote "negative materials insulting the head of state, government officials, journalists and citizens who do not support the unconstitutional change of power. In addition, in his articles he gave a false picture of the economic, social, military and international situation of the Republic of Belarus."
Allegedly, from June 1 to July 14, 2023, he posted at least 54 information materials on BAJ resources. He was detained shortly thereafter.
On June 7, 2024, the appeal was heard and the verdict came into force.
On December 11, 2024, the Shklov District Court heard Igor's case under Part 1 of Article 411 (malicious disobedience to the demands of the administration of a correctional facility). Judge Alexander Tarakanov found Igor guilty and sentenced him to another eight months of imprisonment.
As Radio Svaboda reports , the political prisoner was brought from the Mogilev pretrial detention center for several days to the KGB pretrial detention center in Minsk, from where he was returned to Mogilev: "... in the KGB pretrial detention center he went to see a doctor and they listened to his heart, confirmed that the rhythm was not very even, prescribed valerian. He also wrote that after the Shklov colony he lost 15 kg, now he is gaining some weight in Mogilev."
On June 21, 2025, Igor was released after a visit to Minsk by US President Donald Trump's special representative, Keith Kellogg, and was immediately taken to Lithuania.
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Editor-in-Chief of the Regional Newspaper.
"Regionalnaya Gazeta" is an independent publication covering events in four districts of the Minsk region (Molodechno, Vileika, Myadel and Volozhin) and three districts of the Grodno region (Smorgon, Oshmyany, Ostrovets).
In 2022, the site's materials were deemed "extremist materials." Law enforcement officials say the man will be tried for the texts he published.
On 23.01.2024, the appeal was heard and the verdict came into force.
On September 11, 2025, it became known that 52 prisoners of the Belarusian regime were forcibly transferred to the territory of Lithuania. Among them are citizens of European countries. Among those released is Alexander Mantsevich.
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Journalist. Vyacheslav is accused of "assisting extremist activity."
First, Lazarev was taken to the Investigative Committee, and for almost a day his relatives did not know what would happen to him. He is currently being held in Vitebsk SIZO-2.
The court of first instance sentenced Lazarov to five and a half years of imprisonment in a high-security penal colony, finding him guilty under the article on the creation of an "extremist formation" or participation in it (Article 361-1 of the Criminal Code). The Supreme Court changed the sentence to five years of imprisonment in a general regime penal colony.
On September 11, 2025, it became known that 52 prisoners of the Belarusian regime were forcibly transferred to the territory of Lithuania. Among them are citizens of European countries. Among those released is Vyacheslav Lazarev.
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In 2020, a criminal case was opened against Yan, the editor of the NEXTA Telegram channels, under a number of articles, including "organizing mass riots" and "inciting hatred." As part of the special proceedings, in May 2023, he was convicted in absentia and sentenced to a long term of imprisonment in a maximum security penal colony. According to the Belarusian state news agency BelTA, the defendants in the "case" are accused of committing at least 1,586 crimes, and a claim for more than 30 million rubles has been filed.
Earlier, the KGB included Yan on the “terrorist list”, and the NEXTA channel in Belarus was recognized as a “terrorist organization”.
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Cameraman. Pavel collaborated with independent media. The journalist had previously been detained multiple times while covering political events in Belarus, including after 2020. He was detained as part of a criminal case on February 9 after a search of his home, during which mobile phones and a video camera were seized. It was later revealed that Pavel was charged under Part 1 of Article 361-1 of the Criminal Code.
On September 11, 2025, it became known that 52 prisoners of the Belarusian regime were forcibly transferred to the territory of Lithuania. Among them are citizens of European countries. Among those released is Pavel Podobed.
| 21.02.2023 | Detained on January 20, 23, placed in the Zaslavsky District Department of Internal Affairs, at 01.01. F. Skorina, 20. They detained the KGB, near the car, in the district of Zaslavl. I received the first 15 days for a repost from the Radio Liberty website from 2017. |