Belarus has released 123 prisoners, including opposition leader Maria Kalesnikava, Nobel Peace Prize-winning rights activist Ales Bialiatski and ex-presidential candidate Viktar Babaryka, in a deal brokered by the United States.
The prisoners were freed in connection with the lifting of "illegal" U.S. sanctions on the Belarusian potash industry earlier Saturday as well as Washington's work to lift other sanctions on Belarus, President Alexander Lukashenko's press service said in a statement.
All of the released prisoners are now outside Belarus, an adviser to exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said.
Kalesnikava, 43, was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2021 after helping lead historic protests against Lukashenko's re-election in 2020.
She refused to go into exile and tore up her passport at the Belarus-Ukraine border but was ultimately jailed for violating national security and conspiring to seize power.
"I just talked to Maria on video," Kalesnikava's sister Tatsiana Khomich said on X following her release. "She is free! I cannot describe my happiness! Looking forward to hug her again."
Bialiatski, 63, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2023 on charges of smuggling and financing "activities that grossly violate public order," a verdict that drew widespread condemnation in the West.
Babaryka, 62, a former banker whose 2020 presidential campaign was managed by Kalesnikava before he was arrested, was serving a 14-year sentence on charges of fraud and money laundering that he denies.
The prisoners released on Saturday had been convicted on charges including espionage, terrorism and extremism and included citizens of other countries including the United States and Latvia.
Belarus has carried out a sweeping and violent crackdown on opposition activists and ordinary people who criticize Lukashenko since the 2020 protests, which saw hundreds of thousands of Belarusians take to the streets to call for free and fair elections.
It has typically charged critics with “extremism,” handing out years-long prison sentences.
Minsk has sought to improve ties with the U.S. since President Donald Trump returned to office this year, freeing dozens of political prisoners including opposition leader Siarhei Tsikhanouski in recent months.
Belarus had at least 1,200 political prisoners as of November 2025, according to the rights group Viasna.
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