Imprisoned Belarus activist taken to hospital emergency unit

By YURAS KARMANAU
Associated Press

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The father of a prominent member of the Belarusian opposition serving an 11-year prison sentence for helping organize anti-government protests says his daughter was taken to a hospital emergency department and underwent surgery. Alexander Kolesnikov said his daughter, Maria Kolesnikova, was in grave but stable condition on Tuesday. Kolesnikov said the doctors didn’t share her diagnosis or any other details with him about the surgery. He says his daughter looked energetic and cheerful when he last visited her in prison about a month ago. Kolesnikova has been in custody since September 2020, when she tore up her passport to prevent her forced expulsion from Belarus amid protests challenging the reelection of the country’s authoritarian president.