Opposition Leader Kidnapped from Downtown Belarus

According to Interfax, Maria Kolesnikova, a member of the Coordinating Council and a leader of the Belarusian opposition, has gone missing from the center of Minsk, the capital of Belarus.

Witnesses reported that at 10:05 AM, men in civilian clothes and masks forcibly put Kolesnikova into a minivan marked with "KAP" and took her in an unknown direction.

According to the spokesperson for the Coordinating Council, Anton Rodnenkov, Kolesnikova was in the city center for personal matters, and since 11 AM, it has been impossible to establish contact with her. Reports indicate that several other members of the Coordinating Council have also disappeared along with Kolesnikova.

Law enforcement agencies, including the police, the Investigative Committee, and the State Control Committee, have denied that they have been arrested.

It is worth noting that protests demanding the resignation of Alexander Lukashenko and new elections have been ongoing in Belarus for four weeks. Police have regularly used tear gas and force against demonstrators.