Who was Roman Protasevich and why was he arrested in Minsk in 2021?

Roman Protasevich is an opposition journalist who became a target of the Belarusian government due to his role in reporting on and opposing the regime of Alexander Lukashenko.21

In May 2021, his arrest occurred under extraordinary circumstances. A Belarusian fighter jet was dispatched to intercept a commercial airliner traveling from Athens to Vilnius, forcing the plane to divert and land in Minsk. Upon landing, security officials boarded the aircraft and took Protasevich into custody.21

Western leaders widely condemned the incident, characterizing it as a state-sponsored hijacking or "air piracy," while the Lukashenko regime dismissed these accusations, claiming the country was the target of a Western "hybrid warfare" campaign. This action was part of a broader, ongoing campaign by the Belarusian government to suppress political opposition and dissent following the widespread protests that erupted in 2020.21