Belarus opposition claims responsibility for attack on Russian military plane

BYPOL head Aliaksandr Azarau insists that the drone attack on the Machulishchy airfield near Minsk was carried out by Belarusian partisans (those participating in the Peramoha (Victory) plan). His comments came in response to the publications of Russian propagandists who put the responsibility on the Ukrainian special services for the strikes

"Everyone is putting forward the version that suits them," Azarau said in a commentary for Radio Liberty. "If we didn't know for sure that they were Belarusian partisans, we wouldn't say anything. The Lukashists say that we are guided by foreign intelligence services, but that's not true. The Belarusian partisans work independently. The Lukashists should expect more to come".

On the morning of February 26, a Russian A-50 long-range radar detection and control aircraft, which conducts radio reconnaissance - tracking Ukrainian radar stations and anti-aircraft missile systems - was damaged in Machulishchy, some 12 km from Minsk. The Belarusian authorities and Moscow remain silent about the sabotage. On February 27, Aliaksandr Lukashenka held a meeting with heads of the security apparatus. 

The attack on the airfield is described by commentators as a "resounding slap in the face".

Russian propagandists wrote that the airfield was attacked by six drones, most of which were shot down. "We are not going to mention the number of drones yet," Azarau says. "But I confirm that it was a drone attack. Let the special services work alone and try to determine how many there were". 

BYPOL (Belarus Police) is an organization of former law-enforcement officers now in exile and opposed to Aliaksander Lukashenka's rule and Russian aggression in Ukraine.