The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

A judge of Minsk’s Savetski District Court upheld Tuesday a lawsuit filed by an employee of Mazyr Oil Refinery against opposition politician Viktar Ivashkevich for his campaign for the European Union’s ban on Belarusian petroleum products.

The Prosecutor General's Office has threatened Dzmitry Uss (Vus), an opposition candidate in Belarus' 2010 presidential election, with criminal prosecution if he continues to call on the European Union to impose economic sanctions against Belarus, BelaPAN said.

BRUSSELS -- European Union foreign ministers have imposed new sanctions targeting the Iranian, Belarusian, and Syrian regimes.

The Council of the European Union on February 27 added 21 new names to the EU’s list of Belarusians subject to restrictive measures in connection with the ongoing crackdown on government opponents, BelaPAN said.

The European Union's foreign ministers agreed at their meeting on Monday to broaden the criteria for imposing "restrictive measures" on Belarusian persons and entities in response to human rights abuse and the persecution of the government's political opponents.

The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) may recommend the Committee of Ministers to introduce restrictive measures against Minsk after the example of the European Union, Andres Herkel, PACE rapporteur for Belarus, said in an interview with BelaPAN in Strasbourg on Monday, BelaPAN said.

The House of Representatives of the United States has announced about news sanctions against Belarus.

A list of officials subject to visa sanctions was expanded and financial restrictions were imposed on the country’s political leaders and security service chiefs.

The EU's press-center has informed that two officials who participated in the trial against HR defender Ales Byalyatski were included into the "black list".