At least 142 people remain imprisoned in Belarus for supporting Ukraine
At least 419 people in Belarus have been convicted in cases related to supporting Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Reform.news media outlet reported, citing data from the Viasna Human Rights Centre. Of these, 142 people remain in prison.
According to the Viasna Human Rights Centre, the criminal cases involve, among other things, passing information about the movement of Russian military equipment through the territory of Belarus, financial support for Ukraine, railway sabotage and participation in Ukrainian military formations. Viasna suggests that the actual number of those prosecuted may be higher.
The largest number of convictions – 222 – were handed down under the article on “facilitating extremist activity”. According to the publication, this mainly concerns passing photos and videos of the movement of Russian military equipment.
A further 44 people were convicted of “treason to the state” in connection with supporting Ukraine. Seventeen foreign nationals were sentenced on charges of “agent activity”.
In terrorism cases, particularly concerning sabotage on the railway and at the Machulishchy airbase, 29 people were convicted. Another 45 people were sentenced for money transfers that investigators deemed to be financing terrorist activity or extremist formations.
One of the largest cases related to Russia’s war against Ukraine was the case known as the “Hajun case”.
The prosecution began after the hacking of the monitoring project “Belaruski Hajun” on 5 February 2025. Since 2022, information about the movement of Russian military equipment through the territory of Belarus had been disseminated through it.
After security forces obtained the personal data of the project’s users, detentions began in various regions of the country.
As of 22 October 2026, Viasna is aware of at least 141 individuals involved in this case. Of these, at least 41 people are behind bars. Recently, a 31-year-old resident of the town of Khoinyki, Artur Syrokvasha, was sentenced to three and a half years in a penal colony.
A separate category of those prosecuted is the so-called “railway partisans”. This is the term used for people accused by Belarusian security forces of railway sabotage after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
According to the Viasna Human Rights Centre, 10 political prisoners detained in connection with such sabotage cases remain in prison.
Human rights advocates also report instances of violence and torture during detentions. According to their data, none of the so-called “railway partisans” has been released as part of a pardon or swap.
On 24 September, self-proclaimed president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko signed a decree pardoning 15 convicted individuals. Among those pardoned were 13 people convicted of “extremist” offences. Most of those pardoned – 10 people – were women.
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