Belarus election: Lukashenko’s claim of landslide victory sparks widespread protests

Riot police deployed in Minsk and about 20 other cities in some of the biggest clashes in the country’s history

• Opposition candidate comes out of hiding as Belarus votes

Clashes broke out in cities across Belarus on Sunday evening as riot police used rubber bullets, flash grenades, teargas and water cannon to quash protests against the results of the contested presidential election.

Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled for 26 years, claimed he had won a landslide victory in an election marred by accusations of vote-rigging. The election commission claimed Lukashenko was ahead with 82% of the vote in preliminary results on Sunday evening. The opposition, led by Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, had held some of the country’s largest political rallies since the days of the Soviet Union.

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