Activist who ran for Belarusian presidency in 2020 detained

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A human rights group says an opposition politician who ran against authoritarian Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has been arrested in Minsk. The Viasna center reported Thursday that the 41-year-old activist who heads the Tell the Truth movement was seized by security forces near his home in the capital late Wednesday. The reason for Andrey Dzmitryeu’s arrest and the charges against him are unknown. Dzmitryeu is being held at a detention center where human rights activists say political prisoners have been tortured. Belarusian authorities declined to comment. Dzmitryeu ran in the disputed 2020 presidential election that was denounced as a sham by the West. The result sparked huge anti-government protests.