by Shelby Talcott
DailyCaller.com
White House press secretary Jen Psaki condemned Belarus’ decision to divert a passenger flight and arrest opposition journalist Raman Protasevich, who was on the aircraft, over the weekend.
Longtime Belarus leader Aleksandr G. Lukashenko – who has a history of suppressing free speech – had a military aircraft intercept, divert and force down a Ryanair flight carrying about 170 passengers Sunday. Belarusian air traffic controllers told pilots there was a possible “security threat on board” while the plane was flying over Belarus, prompting the aircraft to be escorted by a fighter jet and land in Minsk, according to The New York Times.
Once on the ground, Protasevich was removed and arrested. The incident has caused international uproar, with European Union (EU) leaders threatening sanctions and the Greek Foreign Ministry dubbing it a “state hijacking,” the NYT reported.