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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 4h

On October 10, I’ll join Journalists for Human Rights and Global Affairs Canada for a panel on how authoritarian regimes target journalists and activists beyond their borders - and what we can do about it.

Held alongside the Riga Conference 2025, regester here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Riga Conference Side Panel Event on Transnational Repression and Exiled Russian & Belarusian Exiled Media

8:30-9:30am October 10. 2025 University of Latvia’s House of Science, Jelgavas Street 3, Riga.

docs.google.com

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 1d

The regime recently arrested & repressed #Wikipedia editors in #Belarus. As a result, Belarusian-language sections are now experiencing record lows in article growth.

In July, only 361 new articles were created - a dramatic drop from the usual 900-1100 per month.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 1d

#Belarus Andrzej Poczobut, journalist and political prisoner, was thrown again in a punishment cell for six months until February 2026. His health is very weak, yet the regime punishes him even more. His conditions and treatment expose ongoing human rights abuses.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 3d

What a joy to speak at Reid Hall in Paris about the past five years of what happened with #Belarus & Belarusians.

My goal was to show what’s happening today - and why I’m most drawn to the situation inside the country.

I focused on political prisoners, independent media & the cost of resistance.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 3d

#Belarus Terror continues daily. Stanislau Machalau and Sviatlana Yakubovich married while he was detained. He was released but both were later re-arrested. The regime is repressing entire families. What does it prove? Only that they can.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 5d

I am wondering!

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 7d

Honored to see leaders of democratic #Belarus and #Ukraine, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Volodymyr Zelensky, meet in Denmark. Our countries' fates are profoundly linked - standing up to Russian aggression and fighting for freedom. We are united in the struggle for a democratic future.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 8d

#Belarus I argue in my latest Atlantic Council piece:

Lukashenka's "release" of political prisoners is not reform, it's hostage diplomacy. For every freed activist, more are jailed. Rewarding Minsk entrenches dictatorship and gives Putin loopholes ➡️
www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrain...

Belarus dictator must not be rewarded for releasing his own prisoners

Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka is attempting to repair relations with the West by trading political prisoners for concessions. If this hostage diplomacy proves successful, it will strengthe...

www.atlanticcouncil.org

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 10d

#Belarus The regime must reveal information about Mikalai Statkevich. Where is he? How is his health? Why was he released and was later driven away? This is unacceptable and very worrying that the regime is hiding him. Is he alive?

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 12d

#Belarus 15 days without information about whereabouts of Mikalai Statkevich. Unknown people drove him away from the border with Lithuania. The regime knows where he is but doesn’t reveal it. We must pressure for the answer. I am worried about his health and life.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 13d

The second layer: he openly admits the goal is to supply electricity to the Russian-occupied territories of #Ukraine. This is about deepening occupation, not energy or prosperity.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 13d

#Belarus Lukashenka wants Russian money to build a new nuclear power plant in Belarus - despite the security risk to the entire continent. With poor technology, no standards, and zero international oversight, this project is a threat, not a solution.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 13d

So glad to be attending the iMEdD Journalism Forum this year. We kicked off yesterday and continue discussions on journalism, trust, AI, and navigating the age of doubt today.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 16d

Poland will open the border with #Belarus, announced PM Tusk.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 17d

Białorusinka, a dziś reprezentantka Polski zdobyła medal w skoku wzwyż! Maria Żodzik pokonała poprzeczkę na wysokości 2,00 m, bijąc swój rekord życiowy i zapewniając Polsce jedyny medal w Tokio. Wielkie gratulacje dla Polski, bo to sukces nas wszystkich.

#Poland
#Belarus

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 18d

A senior ruling Communist Party of China official arrived in #Belarus just as Poland closed its border with the country, further isolating Lukashenka's regime.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 20d

#Poland Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński alerted that last night Belarusian and Russian drones attempted to breach Polish airspace. The situation remains highly tense with increased drone activity at the border.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 20d

The absolute majority of 141 voted in favour of the report I advised on for @eesc.bsky.social.

Key topics: reforming AI & social media algorithms for better visibility of fact-based information, censorship in #Belarus, FIMI and propaganda. Now the report will be sent to EU institutions.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 22d

#Belarus The prison in Hlybokaye refuses to confirm that Mikalai Statkevich has been brought there. They know and are deliberately keeping his wife and society uninformed. This is the abduction of a released political prisoner.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 22d

Some of my favourite photos from #Belarus:

- the forest near my childhood home in Minsk
- apples from the garden of the house the regime seized
- Minsk in 2020

I remember the sounds, smells, moments, people.

I miss home.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 22d

#Belarus The regime reportedly pardoned 25 people, including political prisoners sentenced for "extremist" crimes. Among them are 12 women & 13 men. One was convicted as a minor.

Just today, we learned that my colleague, journalist Ihar Ilyash was sentenced to 4 years in jail.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 22d

A strong report by the UN Group of Independent Experts exposes grave, systematic human rights violations and crimes against humanity in #Belarus since 2020. It underscores the urgent need for international accountability as domestic routes remain blocked ➡️ www.ohchr.org/sites/defaul...

www.ohchr.org

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 23d

I spoke with TVP World about Zapad-2025: what joint military drills mean for #Belarus’s sovereignty, NATO security, and how Belarusians see Russian troops & nukes on their soil:
tvpworld.com/88931504/rus...

Russia flaunts zircon missile in Zapad-2025 drills with Belarus, political analyst says

Russia flaunts zircon missile in Zapad-2025 drills with Belarus, political analyst says.

tvpworld.com

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 23d

#Poland says its border with #Belarus will stay shut beyond the Zapad-2025 drills. Warsaw: closure is "until further notice" and tied to security concerns - not just the Russian-Belarusian maneuvers.

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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 23d

US military officers just made a surprise visit to #Belarus - watching joint war games with Russia from the front row. Days after drones' incursion into Poland.

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