Opposition youths grabbed by police during protest in Minsk

Seven members of the Malady Front opposition youth group were grabbed by police during a demonstration near the headquarters of the Committee for State Security (KGB) in Minsk on November 7. The young people were standing in front of the KGB founder Felix Dzerzhinsky's bust, holding a sign that said, “Communism must be brought before tribunal!”

The protest was timed to coincide with the 91st anniversary of the October Revolution still observed in Belarus as a public holiday.

The youths were brought to a district police department and interviewed. Two of the protesters, who have not yet turned 18, were released later in the day, while the others are expected to be held in custody pending their trial on a charge of participation in an unauthorized mass event, Malady Front Mikalay Dzemidzenka told BelaPAN.

The five activists are likely to be held in the detention center on Akrestsina Street until November 10, Mr. Dzemidzenka said.