President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called on Belarus to refrain from all acts of street violence and abide by maximum tolerance. He posted this on his Telegram channel.
According to Zelensky, Belarus is trying to determine the vector of its further development, which is extremely difficult.
"We definitely urge our neighbors for maximum tolerance and restrain from any public violence. We urge for the utmost open, however difficult dialogue. Because only wide dialogue will let citizens of the Republic of Belarus find an exit from a tough crisis situation and honestly discuss further steps and formats of public cooperation," President of Ukraine wrote.
Zelensky added that both sides must be interested in dialogue; otherwise, the escalation of violence will take place, which could result in tough consequences.
On the presidential election day, August 9, the Belarusian police apprehended more than 120 people. RBC reported that with a reference to Vesna human rights protection center.
More than half of the detentions took place in Minsk. The list of apprehended people includes a local TV reporter, voters, and an observer that worked at a polling station.
One man was beaten up by the riot police operatives, and the ambulance took him to the hospital. At least one man died, after being mowed down by a police truck.
In other cities, such as Gomel, Grodno, Vitebsk, Brest, Bobruisk, Polotsk, Baranovichi, and Zhlobin, law enforcers took 79 people to police stations.
According to exit polls data, the incumbent leader Aleksandr Lukashenko wins with 79.7 percent of votes, while his main rival Svetlana Tikhanovskaya collected almost seven percent. Tikhanovskaya also wins the election in the foreign electoral district.
