Belarus police say firearms used on protesters in southern city, one wounded

MINSK: The interior ministry in Belarus said Wednesday police in the southwestern city of Brest used firearms against a group of protesters and that one was wounded.

It was the first time Belarusian authorities confirmed the use of firearms during post-election protests that broke out in the authoritarian ex-Soviet country on Sunday night.

"A group of aggressive citizens with metal rods in their hands attacked police employees in Brest" on Tuesday, spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova said in a statement on Wednesday.

"Firearms were used to protect the lives and health of the employees," she said, adding that "one of the attackers" was wounded.

Chemodanova said police used firearms after "warning shots in the air" did not stop the group.

Brest, a city of some 340,000 people, is located in southwest Belarus on the border with EU member Poland.

The interior ministry said protesters gathered for protests in 25 cities and towns on Tuesday night and that more than 1,000 people had been detained. The latest arrests have brought the number of detentions to more than 6,000 after three days of protests.

More than 50 people sought medical assistance, it said.

In the western town of Zhabinka someone threw a Molotov cocktail at a police car, the interior ministry added.

Seventeen investigations were opened over violence against police, it said.

The protests broke out after election officials said strongman Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994, won 80 percent of the vote in Sunday's polls, securing a sixth term.

Election officials said Tikhanovskaya, a 37-year-old political novice who ran after other potential opposition candidates including her husband were jailed, came second with 10 percent.

Tikhanovskaya said the vote was rigged and claimed victory, demanding that Lukashenko hand over power, but left Belarus on Tuesday for neighbouring Lithuania, with supporters saying she came under pressure from authorities.