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| - A crushing re-election victory for Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko in disputed polls has been followed by two weeks of anti-government protests seeking to oust him. Here is a recap of the drama in the ex-Soviet country. On August 9, 2020, the 65-year-old Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron fist since 1994, runs for a sixth term in a presidential election. His main rival is the 37-year-old political novice Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who decided to run after her blogger husband Sergei Tikhanovsky was jailed and barred from contesting. That night, an official exit poll declares Lukashenko the victor. Tikhanovskaya rejects the results. Anti-government protests break out that are violently repressed by police, leading to about 3,000 arrests and dozens of injuries. The next day, the first official results give victory to Lukashenko with 80 percent of votes, far ahead of Tikhanovskaya with 10 percent. Tikhanovskaya claims victory and calls on Lukashenko to step down. For a second night, demonstrators clash with police in Minsk and other cities, leading to some 2,000 arrests. One man dies when an explosive device goes off in his hand, police say, the first fatality of the post-election protests. On August 11 a distressed-looking Tikhanovskaya says she has made a "difficult decision" to leave her country for Lithuania. In Minsk, state media release a video showing Tikhanovskaya urging supporters not to protest, but her allies say it was recorded under pressure. Fresh protests take place overnight, with another harsh crackdown by security forces. About 1,000 people are arrested. The interior ministry on August 12 says police in the city of Brest used firearms against a group of protesters. Officials confirm the death of a 25-year-old man in detention. On August 13, several thousand men and women, many wearing white and holding flowers and balloons, form human chains, holding hands and walking through Minsk. On August 14, the opposition movement gains momentum when large groups of workers from huge tractor and automobile factories down tools for the first time and march to the central square in Minsk, chanting for Lukashenko to "Leave!," and "Long live Belarus!". People detained during the demonstrations begin to emerge from jail with harrowing accounts of beatings and torture. At a meeting in Brussels the European Union approves sanctions against those involved in the repression and electoral fraud. On August 16, tens of thousands of people gather in Minsk in what is the biggest ever opposition rally in the history of the country. Tikhanovskaya says in a video from exile in Lithuania she is ready to take over the country's leadership. On August 20, Belarus prosecutors open a criminal investigation into attempts by the opposition to "seize power". US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo offers his support for the "aspirations" of protesters. On August 22 Lukashenko orders his defence minister to take "stringent measures" to defend the country's territorial integrity and says NATO troops in Poland and Lithuania are "seriously stirring" near their borders with Belarus. NATO says the claims are "baseless". In an interview with AFP, Tikhanovskaya calls Lukashenko's move to step up border security an attempt to "distract attention from our inner problems" and urges protesters to keep up the momentum. On August 23, tens of thousands of people come out in Minsk demanding Lukashenko's resignation. burs-fm-eab/txw
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