Ukrainian citizen who was attempting to travel to Poland has been held in custody in Belarus for second month, - human rights activists
Bohdan Herish, a Ukrainian citizen, has been held in custody in Belarus for the second month running; he was detained whilst transiting through the country.
This is reported by Censor.NET, citing the "Viasna" Human Rights Centre.
A Ukrainian man was detained whilst crossing the border
According to human rights activists, 29-year-old Bohdan Herish lives and works in Rome. On 6 May, he was travelling on a coach from Latvia to Poland via Belarus.
During a border check, Belarusian security forces detained a Ukrainian national and seized his mobile phone and documents, including a valid Italian residence permit.
On 8 May, Herish rang his family from the detention centre and told them that he had been arrested for 15 days – until 22 May.
There is no connection with the Ukrainian
After that, the man was no longer in contact. His relatives found out that he was being held at the Zhovtnevy Temporary Detention Centre in Grodno.
According to them, a lawyer cannot obtain permission to meet with their client.
Human rights activists note that, since the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, there has been an increase in the number of Ukrainian citizens being detained in Belarus on political grounds. According to "Viasna", Ukrainians are being subjected to rigorous checks at the border, interrogated, having their mobile phones searched, and asked questions about the war and the purpose of their journey.
