MINSK, August 10. /TASS/: The number of people detained in Belarus on the presidential election day has grown to 213, according to the Vesna human rights center.
"As of 10 am on August 10, Vesna had information on at least 213 people detained in Belarus on August 9," the center said in a statement on Telegram, adding that the actual number of detained could be higher.
TASS has no official information from the country’s Interior Ministry at the moment.
Vesna’s official website contains information on more than 120 people detained in the Belarusian capital of Minsk on the election day.
Protests against incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko erupted in Belarus following the presidential vote on August 9. Serious clashes with law enforcement forces took place in downtown Minsk. The standoff went on for almost four hours. Law enforcement officers used water cannons, pepper spray and flash-bang devices on protesters. Casualties and detentions were reported.
According to preliminary data from the country’s Central Election Commission, Lukashenko received 80.23% of the vote, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya garnered 9.90% and the other three presidential candidates gained less than 2%.
