# Belarus

Government actions against journalists in Belarus

[RSF 2026 rank: 165th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index). World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders (RSF); rank 1 is the freest.

The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.

Belarus is in Eastern Europe, Europe. The record holds 5 incidents in which the government of Belarus, or an official, court or legislature there, limited journalists' ability to report.

## Tactics used

- [Detention and violence: 2](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?country=BY&tactic=detention_and_violence), ladder: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders/detention_and_violence
- [Access bans: 1](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?country=BY&tactic=access_ban), ladder: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders/access_ban
- [Official labels: 1](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?country=BY&tactic=disinformation_labeling), ladder: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders/disinformation_labeling
- [Insult and defamation laws: 1](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?country=BY&tactic=insult_and_defamation_laws), ladder: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders/insult_and_defamation_laws
- [Shutdowns and blocking: 1](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?country=BY&tactic=shutdowns_and_blocking), ladder: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders/shutdowns_and_blocking

## Heads of government at the time

- [Alexander Lukashenko: 5 incidents](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/alexander-lukashenko)

## Incidents by year

### 2023

| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| February 8, 2023 | [Belarus: journalist Andrzej Poczobut sentenced to eight years](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-belarus-sentences-poczobut) | [Detention and violence](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/detention_and_violence) | Eliminate | [Alexander Lukashenko](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/alexander-lukashenko) | Reversed (April 28, 2026) |
| February 8, 2023 | [Belarus: journalist Andrzej Poczobut is sentenced to eight years for inciting hatred](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-belarus-poczobut-eight-year-sentence) | [Insult and defamation laws](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws) | Eliminate | [Alexander Lukashenko](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/alexander-lukashenko) | Reversed (April 28, 2026) |

### 2022

| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| March 9, 2022 | [Belarus: Deutsche Welle and other outlets labeled 'extremist'](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-belarus-labels-dw-extremist) | [Official labels](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/disinformation_labeling) | Pressure | [Alexander Lukashenko](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/alexander-lukashenko) | Sustained (March 9, 2022) |

### 2021

| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| May 18, 2021 | [Belarus blocks Tut.by and arrests its editors as 'extremist'](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-belarus-blocks-tutby-arrests-staff) | [Shutdowns and blocking](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/shutdowns_and_blocking) | Silence | [Alexander Lukashenko](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/alexander-lukashenko) | Sustained |

### 2020

| Date | Incident | Tactic | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| August 29, 2020 | [Belarus: accreditation withdrawn from 17 journalists working for foreign outlets](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-belarus-strips-accreditation-foreign-outlets) | [Access bans](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/access_ban) | Punish | [Alexander Lukashenko](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/alexander-lukashenko) | Sustained (August 29, 2020) |

Ladders: https://thewaronnews.com/ladders. Timeline: https://thewaronnews.com/timeline/country/by.

Download incidents in Belarus. CSV, JSON or Markdown. CC BY 4.0; credit "The War On News, thewaronnews.com".
- CSV: https://thewaronnews.com/countries/by?format=csv
- JSON: https://thewaronnews.com/countries/by.json
- Markdown: https://thewaronnews.com/countries/by.md

Source page: https://thewaronnews.com/countries/by. The War On News, CC BY 4.0.