Belarus frees three Poles along with other political prisoners
Three Polish citizens have been released by the Belarusian authorities along with a group of other nationals, including the husband of the exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has reported.
"The group of 14 prisoners freed today by Belarusian authorities, one of them being Siarhei Tsikhanouski, has included three citizens of Poland whose release had been sought for by the Polish authorities," MFA wrote in a statement on Saturday.
"A representative of the Polish foreign ministry was present during the handover of the prisoners in the US embassy in Vilnius," the statement read.
The foreign ministry thanked the US administration for their efforts and for the support offered by President Andrzej Duda. It also expressed hope that the Minsk visit of the US president’s envoys, namely General Keith Kellog, John Coale, and Chris Smith, would mark the first step towards the release of other Polish prisoners, including Andrzej Poczobut.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski hailed the release from jail of 14 prisoners and thanked the US for its role in securing their freedom.
"The free world needs you," Sikorski wrote on X, adding that "My sincerest joy goes out to you Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and your entire family. Seeing you together again shows why years of struggle for freedom matter."
He also declared that Poland would continue to strive to free other political prisoners in Belarus, including Andrzej Poczobut.
Sikorski also thanked US envoy Keith Kellogg for securing the "release of 14 political prisoners in Belarus".
Internationally recognised as a political prisoner, Poczobut was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2021 after found guilty of "intentional actions aimed at inciting hostility and hatred on national, religious and social grounds."
Poczobut, a long-time correspondent for Poland's Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper, was also active in the Union of Poles in Belarus (ZPB), a Polish minority organisation de-legalised by the Belarusian authorities.
Siarhei Tsikhanouski was freed on Saturday after more than five years in prison. In total, five Belarusians were freed along with three Poles, two Latvians, two Japanese citizens, one Estonian and one Swede. (PAP)
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