Had been in custody since 2022

Political prisoner (64) dies in Belarus

Opposition activist Igar Lednik (64) has died in prison in Belarus. This was announced by his former social democratic Belarusian party Gramada on Tuesday. Lednik had been imprisoned in 2022 for "defaming" President Alexander Lukashenko.

He was a democracy activist and journalist. Lednik was arrested in December 2022 and later sentenced to three years in prison for allegedly publishing in a party newspaper. On Tuesday, the opposition figure's former party announced that Lednik had died in custody. The human rights organization Wiasna confirmed the information.

Operation and heart problems
The activist's health had "deteriorated considerably" in prison, according to the Gramada party, which is kept alive by Belarusians in exile. According to the statement, Lednik had undergone surgery for a problem with his digestive tract and was also suffering from heart problems. However, the party did not disclose the exact cause of his death or the time of death.

Any opposition is massively suppressed in Belarus. The reason for this is that they denounced Lukashenko's alleged re-election in 2020 as fraudulent. The Belarusian president is a close ally of Russian ruler Vladimir Putin (see video above). According to Viasna, 1400 political prisoners are in jail in Belarus.