Minsk Under Attack

AP: Minsk

Forward elements of the 1st Motorized Division have entered the outskirts of Minsk, and have overwhelmed the light opposition they have faced. The 3rd Airborne Brigade remains firmly in control of central Minsk. However, in the last ten minutes we have experienced multiple attacks from what appear to be Belarusian Air Force aircraft.

Minsk is burning.

Belarus Crisis Heats Up

AP: Minsk

The mood in the city has moved from exuberant to tense in the hour since the air attack on the Presidential Palace. Crowds in Victory Square remain large and defiant, and police seem to have agreed to work with the leaders of the coup and of the opposition movment.

There are now reports, however, that two Belarusian Army columns are approaching Minsk from the east. The columns are said to be some twenty five miles outside the city, and are advancing at speed.

AP: Vitebsk

Major General Stanislav Smolsky, in an apparent response to opposition leader Aleksandr Milinkevich's invitation to Western peacekeepers and election observers, has invited Russian forces to occupy some areas inside the Belarusian border in order to protect Russian citizens and property.

Milinkevich Invites Peacekeepers

AP: Minsk

In response to a NATO declaration in support of democratic processes, opposition leader Aleksandr Milinkevich has invited observers and peacekeepers to facilitate the peaceful conduct of the March 19 election.

NATO Announcement

Official NATO Statement on Belarus (03/04/2006; 09:20am)


In light of the Belarusian coup d’etât confirmed on March 3, 2006, NATO expresses disapproval of the violence in Belarus and support of a democratic process. NATO encourages a peaceful settlement between all opposing parties.

Presidential Palace Struck by Belarusian Aircraft

AP: Minsk

At least three Belarusian Air Force aircraft have attacked the Presidential Palace in Minsk. The Presidential Palace was seized yesterday by the Third Airborne Brigade, and is being held by forces opposed to the government of late President Aleksandr Lukashenko. The damage to the Presidential Palace does not appear to be severe, although one bomb went astray and reportedly killed at least a dozen demonstrators. In spite of the bombing, no move has yet been made by Belarusian Army forces to retake Minsk, and there do not appear to be Army elements in the Minsk area capable of mounting an attack.

Secretary General of NATO Suffers Heart Attack

Last night at NATO headquarters Secretary General Lord Evan Robertson suffered a heart attack. He is reported to be in critical but stable condition at a local hospital. Lord Robertson's illness comes as diplomatic and military activity surrounding the coup in Belarus has increased to a feverish pace. However, Lord Robertson's illness is not expected to cripple or curtail any NATO response.

Smolsky Asserts Control Over Part of Army

AP: Vitebsk

Major General Stanislav Smolsky, Commander of the Belarus Army, has established control over at least some elements of the Army, and has announced his intention to restore the government of President Aleksandr Lukashenko. General Smolsky made his announcement in the city of Vitebsk, where Army units reportedly used force against demonstrators less than twelve hours ago. Smolsky is believed to have close connections with the Russian Army.

AP: Minsk

Crowds in the streets of Minsk continued to increase in size overnight and this morning. The mood appears defiant and exuberant. Opposition Presidential candidate Aleksandr Milinkevich reportedly met with Major General Aleksandr Karseko this morning, and the two have apparently hammered out an agreement regarding the holding of elections on March 19. There is no official response from Minsk thus far on the position of Major General Stanislav Smolsky or the assertive public pronouncements from the Kremlin.

Belarusian Prime Minister Sergey Sidorsky, speaking at Parliament, made an announcement that suggested measured parliamentary support of the coup and of the agreement between Mr. Milinkevich and General Karseko.

President Lukashenko Confirmed Dead; Putin Defiant

Photographic evidence seemed to confirm that President Lukashenko, his wife, Minister of Defense Leonid Maltsev, and several members of the President's entourage have been executed by elements of 3rd Airborne Brigade of the Belarusian Army.

In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin was reported to be deeply disturbed at the death of President Lukashenko, a personal friend. The Russian Foreign Minister made the following announcement:

“The Russian Federation cannot stand by while a band of gangsters seizes power in Belarus. The execution of President Lukashenko is a crime against the people of Belarus and humanity as a whole. The Russian Federation will stand behind the people of Belarus in their efforts to end this time of turmoil and bring President Lukashenko’s assassins to justice. Russia encourages the international community to condemn this coup in the strongest possible terms, and to support the legitimate commander of the Belarus Army, General Stanislav Smolsky.”

Opposition Candidate in Belarus Favors Democratic Solution

Aleksander Milinkevich, opposition candidate in Belarusian elections scheduled for March 19, has issued a statement recommending that elections proceed on schedule. "What is most important," read the statement, "is that the will of the Belarusian people is fulfilled."

Mr. Milinkevich welcomed the overthrow of President Lukashenko without fully endorsing the coup d'etat launched by Major General Aleksandr Karesko. Karesko is rumoured by some in Belarus to have ordered the execution of President Lukashenko. General Karesko is also in control of the Presidential Palace and at least part of the Belarus Army.

Public demonstrations on behalf of Mr. Milinkevich have in several major Belarusian cities. In Brest and Vitebsk, Army units opposed to the coup have violently put these demonstrations down. Some Russian sources have identified the United States and various non-governmental organizations as instigators of the coup.

Large Demonstration in Victory Square, Minsk

A crowd of at least 20000 has gathered in Victory Square, Minsk, to celebrate the overthrow of President Aleksandr Lukashenko. The crowd has been expanding since rumours of a coup first broke over four hours ago. Similar crowds have been reported in cities all over Belarus. Local police in Minsk have made no effort to quell the crowds, although their are reports of army action against demonstrators in Vitebsk and Brest.

Just after the announcement of the coup by an Army spokesman thirty minutes ago, the crowd began to cheer the name of Major General Aleksandr Karseko. However, these cheers were quickly drowned out by cheers for opposition Presidential candidate Aleksandr Milinkevich, who remain either under arrest in hiding, depending on who you ask. The attitude of the crowd is firmly anti-Russian, although this may not reflect the general attitudes of the population as a whole.

General Karseko Announces End to "Reign of Terror"

AP:

A spokesman for the coup plotters in Belarus has released the following announcement:

"Belarus' long night has ended. President Lukashenko and Minister of Defense Maltsev have been detained, and in good time will be tried for their crimes against the people of Belarus. Patriotic elements of the Belarusian Army have seized control of most critical points within Belarus, and are in complete control of the country. First, we call on any residual supporters of the regime of President Lukashenko to lay down their arms and join the Violet Revolution. Second, we demand a cessation of foreign influence in and over Belarus. We believe that lingering resistance is the result of the agitation of foreign elements within Belarus. Third, we warn any foreign powers that aggression against Belarus will be repaid in blood.

The reign of terror is over. Belarus is ready to join the community of nations.

Major General Aleksandr Karseko
3rd Airborne Brigade
Belarus Army"

Russia Denounces Coup

AP:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov gave the following announcement moments ago on Russian television:

“The government of the Russian Federation condemns the perpetrators of the illegal coup d’etat in Belarus in the strongest possible terms. President Putin prays for the safe release of President Lukashenko, his family, and members of his government seized by rebel forces. President Putin hopes that violence can be avoided, but also understands the necessity of bringing the perpetrators of the illegal action to justice. The Russian people stand by Belarus in its time of need.”

Crowds in Victory Square

AP: Large crowds are gathering in Victory Square, and local police seem to be taking no action. While rumours of Belarusian Army activity on the outskirsts of Minsk are running rampant, no army units have been seen in the city, other than those that have seized the Presidential Palace. An eerie calm has descended upon Minsk.

Riots in Vitebsk

The BBC reports that hundreds of demonstrators have taken to the streets in downtown Vitebsk late this afternoon, chanting their support for the overthrow of the government. The provincial leadership has made no announcement and has been reported to be in hiding. No unusual military or police force activity has been reported.

CNN Report: Lukashenko Assassinated

Friday, March 3, 2006: 1402 GMT

Breaking News

CNN has learned that President Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus has been assassinated by members of the Belarusian Army. President Lukashenko was widely regarded to be an authoritarian ruler, and elections on March 19 were expected to return his party to rule. There are also reports that elements of the Belarusian Army have occupied the Presidential Palace in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.

President Lukashenko’s regime had close ties with the Russian Federation. There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin. An anonymous White House official said that the President was “studying” the situation.

Bringing Down Europe's Last Ex-Soviet Dictator

By STEVEN LEE MYERS
Published: February 26, 2006

On March 19, Aleksandr Milinkevich will not be elected the next president of Belarus. He campaigns anyway, but with something else in mind. Through the winter he has traveled from city to city in clattering rented vans, meeting would-be voters in the bleak cold, gathering signatures and speaking about the social, economic and, above all, political neuroses that afflict this small nation at the eastern edge of a new Europe. "I am Aleksandr Milinkevich," he recently assured a worker outside an auto-parts factory in Borisov, a gritty industrial city northeast of the capital, Minsk. The man seemed genuinely stunned to find this stranger greeting him.

"It is impossible to win at the elections, because there are no elections," Milinkevich told me the first time I met him in a dim, three-room apartment in Minsk in October. "Nobody counts the votes." It was my first realization that a presidential campaign in Belarus, a former republic of the Soviet Union, operates with a logic outside any traditional notion of democracy.

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Opposition Candidate in Belarus Is Arrested and Beaten

MOSCOW, March 2 — Security officers in Belarus today arrested and beat a candidate running against President Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, raising tensions ahead of a disputed presidential election scheduled for March 19.

Aleksandr V. Kazulin, an opposition candidate in Belarus, was taken into custody by security officers while attending a political convention in Minsk.

The challenger, Aleksandr V. Kazulin, was released more than eight hours later, but not before his arrest prompted protests, scuffles with police and dozens more detentions during a series of confrontations in the capital, Minsk.

Gunfire erupted near a police station where he was taken, as police officers fired warning shots in an attempt to stop a car carrying his supporters and a photographer, according to the candidate's spokeswoman and the election observer mission of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

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