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| - Police in Belarus on Friday detained several opposition supporters and journalists at a gathering to support candidates seeking to run against President Alexander Lukashenko, in an intensifying crackdown ahead of August's polls. Friday is the last day candidates seeking to challenge the strongman incumbent can gather signatures from supporters, and people lined up streets in Minsk, some of them clapping in support of Lukashenko's critics. Riot police however moved in shortly after 7:00 p.m. to announce the signature gathering must end, detaining about 10 people including journalists from various foreign media, AFP correspondents saw. Several hundred people had gathered in central Minsk, some with flags and loudspeakers, while passing cars honked in support. Several journalists with foreign media outlets were detained, including a correspondent for Radio Free Europe's Belarusian service who was led away by plain-clothed officers while filming a live video, which was then interrupted. Candidates for the presidency must collect at least 100,000 signatures of support to be eligible to stand in the election. In power since 1994, Lukashenko is seeking a sixth term in the August 9 presidential election. , Several of his critics including former banker Viktor Babaryko seen as Lukashenko's leading election rival, have been jailed in the run-up to the vote. "The focus of all political interests is on Belarus. Both from the West and the East," the 65-year-old strongman told officials. He later had a friendly meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, with the two sharing a warm embrace and pledging to overcome any differences. In his meeting with officials, Lukashenko claimed authorities had uncovered a plot to "destabilise Belarus" and organise a popular uprising. "Not only certain puppets that we had here but also puppeteers who are located outside Belarus have been unmasked," Lukashenko said. On Thursday, authorities arrested the 56-year-old Babaryko on suspicion of financial crimes. He formerly headed Belgazprombank, a Belarus subsidiary of Russian energy giant Gazprom. A total of around 20 people have been detained in connection with investigations linked to Belgazprombank. The head of the state control committee, Ivan Tertel, has claimed Babaryko was in cahoots with "puppeteers" from Moscow -- "big Gazprom bosses" or even "higher-placed" figures. On Friday, the general prosecutor's office said it opened a criminal case into organising or participating in a criminal group. The penalty for those crimes is up to 15 years in jail. "The criminal activity of defendants in the Belgazprombank case created a real threat to the national security of Belarus," general prosecutor Alexander Konyuk said. Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman said Friday that Moscow did not favour any particular candidate in the election. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also said the case around Belgazprombank was the ex-Soviet country's "internal affair". "We are not planning to interfere in its domestic affairs in any way," he told reporters. The detention of Babaryko came after authorities jailed other critics including prominent opposition politician Mikola Statkevich and popular vlogger Sergei Tikhanovsky. The run-up to the presidential vote has seen a flurry of opposition activity, in stark contrast to the incumbent's traditional Soviet approach to campaigning. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, an international election and war monitor, has not recognised any polls in Belarus as free and fair since 1995. tk-as-ma/pvh
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