the protests sprung up around last summer s election when belarus s long time leader president lukashenko claimed yet another disputed victory. since then, the regime has cracked down on dissent, arresting hundreds ofjournalists and opposition figures. the leader of the opposition was forced into exile. we are sure it was because of a direct order from lukashenko we are sure it was because of a direct orderfrom lukashenko himself because he considered roman to be his private enemy and so he made possible this operation fulfilled. it couldn t be done without direct orders for sure. the ryanairflight had been making its way between two european capitals, athens and vilnius, when it was diverted by belarussian air traffic controljust before leaving belarus s airspace, escorted by a fully armed mig 29 fighter. the head of the airline believes there were four secret service agents on board.
james landale reports. this is not where flight fr4978 was supposed to be this afternoon, on the ground at minsk airport. the ryanair flight with about 170 people on board left athens this morning bound for vilnius. butjust before the aircraft entered lithuanian airspace, it suddenly headed east. according to ryanair, the crew were warned of a potential security threat and ordered to land at minsk. for good measure, a belarusian warplane armed to the teeth was dispatched to escort the aircraft in. but no bombs were found on board. instead, this man was taken off the plane and arrested. roman protasevich is a well known belarusian opposition journalist and is wanted by the authorities for organising protests last year. according to the belarus state news agency, the operation was ordered personally by the country s authoritarian
cracked down on dissent, arresting hundreds ofjournalists and opposition figures. the leader of the opposition was forced into exile. we are sure that it was because of a direct order of lukashenko himself, because he considered roman to be his private enemy, and so he made possible this operation fulfilled. it couldn t be done without direct orders, for sure. the ryanairflight had been making its way between two european capitals, athens and vilnius, when it was diverted by belarussian air traffic controljust before leaving belarus s airspace, escorted by a fully armed mig 29 fighter. the head of the airline believes there were four secret service agents on board. i think it s the first time it has happened to a european airline, but,
it as an illegal hijacking and said belarus would be punished. this is not where flight fr4978 was supposed to be this afternoon, on the ground at minsk airport. the ryanair flight with about 170 people on board left athens this morning bound for vilnius. butjust before the aircraft entered lithuanian airspace, it suddenly headed east. according to ryanair, the crew were warned of a potential security threat and ordered to land at minsk. for good measure, a belarusian warplane armed to the teeth was dispatched to escort the aircraft in. but no bombs were found on board. instead, this man was taken off the plane and arrested. roman protasevich is a well known belarusian opposition journalist and is wanted by the authorities for organising protests last year. according to the belarus state news agency, the operation was ordered personally by the country s authoritarian president alexander lukashenko, who has faced growing opposition since disputed elections last year.
the plane was en route from greece to lithuania when its crew was ordered to land at minsk, and escorted down by a bela rusian fighter jet. eu leaders will meet in brussels to discuss a response to the incident, which was described as outlandish by the foreign secretary dominic raab. our diplomatic correspondent, james landale, reports. this is not where flight fr4978 was supposed to be, on the ground at minsk airport. the ryanairflight, with about 170 people on board, left athens bound for vilnius. butjust before the aircraft entered lithuanian airspace, it suddenly headed east. according to ryanair, the crew were warned of a potential security threat, and ordered to land at minsk. for good measure, a belarusian warplane, armed to the teeth, was dispatched to escort the aircraft in. but no bombs were found on board. instead, this man was taken off the plane and arrested. roman protasevich is a well known