Belarus has been gripped by mass protests, triggered by an election widely believed to have been rigged in favour of President Alexander Lukashenko.
The president of 26 years has been nicknamed “Europe’s last dictator”, but was challenged by Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, 37, a stay-at-home mother who stepped in as an opposition candidate when her husband was arrested and blocked from registering.
The scale of the opposition rallies has been unprecedented for Belarus, with the opposition movement demanding new, democratic leadership and economic reform. A brutal police crackdown led to more protests, but Mr Lukashenko shows no sign of backing down.
The BBC’s Ben Tavener explains how the crisis has unfolded.
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