NORWAY: A Norwegian MP has nominated three members of the Belarus Opposition for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for organising peaceful protests against the regime of Alexander Lukashenko, he said Sunday.
Geir Toskedal, of the Christian Democratic Party, told the Vart Land daily he had nominated Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, Maria Kolesnikova and Veronika Tsepkalo "for their struggle for fair elections and for inspiring peaceful opposition against the illegitimate regime in Belarus".
The announcement came as thousands of Belarusians took to the streets of Minsk for a new protest against Lukashenko on Sunday, in defiance of threats by authorities to open fire after weeks of demonstrations -- and as the Belarusian interior ministry said police had arrested more than 100 people.
- AFP