In footage aired late Wednesday on Belarusian state TV during an hour-long program, the 26-year-old Pratasevich also said that he had been set up by an unidentified associate
KYIV, Ukraine — A dissident journalist who was arrested after his plane was diverted to Belarus said in a video from prison that demonstrations against the country's authoritarian leader had fizzled and the opposition should wait for a better moment to revive them. It was Raman Pratasevich's second such appearance that his allies dismissed as being coerced.
Outraged European Union leaders called the diversion an act of air piracy and responded by barring the Belarusian flag carrier Belavia from the bloc's airports and airspace, telling European airlines to skirt Belarus and drafting new bruising sanctions against the country. In the new video, Pratasevich looked more relaxed and smiled occasionally, but a top associate said Pratasevich again was clearly speaking under duress.
In the video, Pratasevich described seeing heavily armed special forces waiting as the plane taxied to a parking spot.The journalist said he disclosed his travel plans in a chat with associates 40 minutes before his departure. He alleged that the bomb threat could have been issued by someone with whom he had a personal conflict, but didn’t elaborate.
Pratasevich also said that some time before the flight he had a rift with Franak Viachorka, an adviser to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the main opposition candidate in the August presidential election.
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