LONDON—The U.K. and Canada imposed sanctions on Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko and senior figures in his government, a sign of widening discontent in the West over ongoing repression of peaceful protests against his purported victory in a disputed election.
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab accused Mr. Lukashenko and his allies of multiple human-rights violations in detaining and allegedly torturing protesters following the Aug. 9 poll, which Mr. Lukashenko’s opponents and Western governments say was rigged in his favor to extend his more than a quarter-century in power.
Mr. Lukashenko, his son and national security adviser Viktor, and six other senior officials were banned from entering the U.K. and British-based financial institutions were ordered to freeze any of their assets they may hold. Canada issued travel bans and imposed asset freezes on 11 individuals, including Mr. Lukashenko and his son.
“We don’t accept the results of this rigged election. We will hold those responsible for the thuggery deployed against the Belarusian people to account and we will stand up for our values of democracy and human rights,” Mr. Raab said in a statement Tuesday.
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