{"id":204693,"date":"2026-09-22T12:24:25","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T09:24:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/"},"modified":"2026-09-22T12:24:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T09:24:27","slug":"kgb-arrests-pilots-at-airbase-near-minsk-as-political-purges-grind-on","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/","title":{"rendered":"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>September 22, <em>Pozirk<\/em>.<\/strong> Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and September 21, including numerous arrests of military officers at the airbase in Ma\u010duli\u0161\u010dy near Minsk over alleged links to the exiled opposition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Below is Pozirk\u2019s recap:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>At least 10 officers, mostly experienced military pilots, are currently held in the Committee for State Security (KGB)\u2019s jail in Minsk for allegedly communicating with retired Lieutenant Colonel D\u017amitryj Zara, once an associate of the opposition\u2019s former defense chief Valery Sacha\u0161\u010dyk. Zara, who returned to Belarus earlier this year under unknown circumstances, is staying in the KGB jail himself and has been subjected to torture, <em>Nasha Niva<\/em> reported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Siarhiej Vysocki, who was arrested in December 2025, has been sentenced to nine years in prison over alleged links to the Belarusian Sports Solidarity Foundation. He has been convicted of founding an \u201cextremist group\u201d and discrediting Belarus, <em>Tribuna<\/em> reported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Political prisoner D\u017amitryj Ro\u017eyn has been given a new prison term under the Criminal Code\u2019s Article 361, which penalizes facilitating \u201cextremism.\u201d The sentence is unknown. The 30-year-old man is already serving three years in prison under Article 361, <em>Nasha Niva<\/em> reported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Arciom Mierkiel, a 33-year-old resident of Baranavi\u010dy, Brest region, who was arrested earlier this year, is now known to have been sentenced to seven years in prison for allegedly \u201cpreparing to organize mass disorders.\u201d The Committee for State Security (KGB) has recently added him to its list of \u201cpersons involved in terrorist activities.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Exiled former political prisoner Hanna Vi\u0161niak has been sentenced to five years in prison in her absence on charges of inciting hatred, facilitating \u201cextremism,\u201d insulting Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka and insulting a government official, according to Vi\u0161niak\u2019s Facebook page.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The interior ministry on September 18 added 10 names to its list of people it considers \u201cinvolved in extremist activities,\u201d taking the total to 6,917 entries. The new individuals on the list are Ihar Lin\u010de\u016dski, Natalla Davidzienka, U\u0142adzis\u0142a\u016d Biedniako\u016d, Siarhiej Vo\u0142ka\u016d, Siarhiej Sinicki, Vasil Kupracevi\u010d, Halina U\u015bciuhova, Siarhiej Kostka, Alaksandr Siemih\u0142aza\u016d, and Alaksiej Chra\u0142ovi\u010d.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The information ministry added nine Telegram, Threads, Instagram and TikTok accounts to its list of \u201cextremist content\u201d on September 16 and 17. \u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Prosecutors in the Homiel region filed more than 80 requests with courts to designate information material as \u201cextremist content\u201d and add it to the respective list, <em>Pozirk<\/em> reported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ja\u016dhien Karau\u0142a\u016d, a member of the opposition Coordination Council, reported on Facebook that KGB officers had been harassing him and his family for three months in an attempt to recruit him. His mother has been brought to a police station twice and threatened with violence. His grandmother\u2019s phone was taken away and returned only a week later.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Aksana \u0160alapina, a 48-year-old artist who was sentenced to three years in prison in November 2025 for helping political prisoners, has been diagnosed with cancer, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Juryj Bialko, who is serving nine years in prison on politically motivated charges, has developed serious medial problems. The 43-year-old man has been moved to a tougher prison after long periods of punitive confinement, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The relatives of some political prisoners received phone calls from correctional institutions and were told that the inmates would be released on the morning of September 16, MAYDAY TEAM said. No such releases have been reported, despite widespread expectations that between 200 and 300 political prisoners would be freed as a result of talks between Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka and US Special Envoy for Belarus John Coale on September 15.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>According to the Viasna Human Rights Center, 224 people have been declared political prisoners since March 19, when 250 imprisoned dissidents were released following \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s previous talks with Coale. In addition, 138 people have been given the status of former political prisoners, as their persecution had previously been undocumented or they had not been added to the list of political prisoners at the request of their families.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>At least 42 political prisoners who have reached retirement age and 15 media workers were behind bars on September 16, reported the Viasna Human Rights Center and the Belarusian Association of Journalists.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The number of documented political prisoners in Belarus decreased by 28 to 884 compared with September 15, Viasna reported. Twenty-five political prisoners were released and deported from Belarus on September 16 after Coale\u2019s meeting with \u0141uka\u0161enka. The actual number of political prisoners in the country is much larger, as many cases go unreported.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"insert-block\">\n\n    <div class=\"insert-block__img\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" width=\"354\" height=\"236\" src=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/lukashenko_koul_15092026_1128x752-354x236.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/lukashenko_koul_15092026_1128x752-354x236.jpg 354w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/lukashenko_koul_15092026_1128x752-734x490.jpg 734w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/lukashenko_koul_15092026_1128x752-178x118.jpg 178w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/lukashenko_koul_15092026_1128x752-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/lukashenko_koul_15092026_1128x752.jpg 1128w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 354px) 100vw, 354px\" \/>                        <label class=\"insert-block__tag--mobile\"> Politics<\/label>\n\n                <\/div>\n    <div class=\"insert-block__text\">\n                    <label class=\"insert-block__tag\">Politics<\/label>\n                <h3 class=\"insert-block__title\">\u0141uka\u0161enka denies holding political prisoners, Coale agrees Citibank should return frozen funds to Minsk<\/h3>\n        <div class=\"insert-block__descr\">September 15, Pozirk. Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka and US Special Envoy for Belarus John Coale had a three-hour meeting in Minsk on Tuesday, with the Belarusian ruler\u2019s press office reporting that he had denied the existence of political prisoners in Belarus, while &#8230;<\/div>\n        <a class=\"insert-block__btn-block\" href=\"\/en\/news\/203800\">\n            <button class=\"btn\">\n                <div class='btn__text'>Read the article<\/div>\n            <\/button>\n        <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and September 21, including numerous arrests of military officers at the airbase in Ma\u010duli\u0161\u010dy near Minsk over alleged links to the exiled opposition. Below is Pozirk\u2019s recap:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":63993,"template":"","rubric":[16],"class_list":["post-204693","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","rubric-politics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on | Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-22T09:24:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1128\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"752\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Pozirk_online\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\"},\"headline\":\"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-22T09:24:25+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-22T09:24:27+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\"},\"wordCount\":752,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\",\"name\":\"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on | Pozirk\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-22T09:24:25+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-22T09:24:27+00:00\",\"description\":\"September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg\",\"width\":1128,\"height\":752},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Pozirk\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Pozirk\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Pozirk\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/Pozirk_online\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on | Pozirk","description":"September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on | Pozirk","og_description":"September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and","og_url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/","og_site_name":"Pozirk","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/","article_modified_time":"2026-09-22T09:24:27+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1128,"height":752,"url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@Pozirk_online","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/"},"headline":"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on","datePublished":"2026-09-22T09:24:25+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-22T09:24:27+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/"},"wordCount":752,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/","name":"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on | Pozirk","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg","datePublished":"2026-09-22T09:24:25+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-22T09:24:27+00:00","description":"September 22, Pozirk. Sources in Belarus have reported dozens of new cases of politically motivated persecution in Belarus between September 16 and","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/pozirk_color_blank_1128x752.jpg","width":1128,"height":752},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204693\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"KGB arrests pilots at airbase near Minsk as political purges grind on"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/","name":"Pozirk","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#organization","name":"Pozirk","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/cropped-Logo_color_512.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Pozirk"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pozirkonline\/","https:\/\/x.com\/Pozirk_online"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/204693","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/73"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"rubric","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rubric?post=204693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}