The Foreign Ministry in Minsk confirmed for the first time that the 30-year-old had been convicted of terrorism and mercenary activities. Ministry spokesman Anatoly Glas did not mention the death penalty, however, but explained that Minsk had offered solutions to the Foreign Office in Berlin. The Foreign Office did not comment on this.
In response to a query from the German Press Agency, the Foreign Office said that the case was known. “The Foreign Office and the embassy in Minsk are providing consular support to the person concerned and are working hard on his behalf with the Belarusian authorities. The death penalty is a cruel and inhumane form of punishment that Germany rejects under all circumstances. We are working worldwide to abolish it and are working hard to prevent its execution with all those affected.”
The former Soviet republic ruled by ruler Alexander Lukashenko is the only country in Europe where this punishment is still carried out – by shooting someone in the back of the neck. The execution is usually only discovered later by relatives. The Belarusian authorities also did not report the arrest of the German in November last year.
“Of course there were contacts with the German side on this issue,” said ministry spokesman Glas in Minsk. “This criminal is a German citizen and we understand the German side’s concern for him.” Belarus has granted the German side consular access in accordance with international law and intergovernmental agreements.
Proposed solutions
“Taking into account the request of the German Foreign Office, the Belarusian side has made concrete proposals for a solution to the existing options for the development of the situation,” said Glas. He did not give any details. The foreign ministries of both countries are holding consultations on the matter, he said.
The former German Red Cross rescue worker is accused of mercenary activity, espionage, terrorism, founding an extremist organization, destroying a transport facility and illegally handling weapons, explosives and ammunition, reported the exiled human rights group Vjasna. The verdict is said to have been handed down in Minsk in June. According to Vjasna, it is unclear whether an appeal has been lodged or whether the verdict is already in force.
Belarus, which has been subject to international sanctions for serious human rights violations and for supporting Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, has in the past bought concessions from the West by releasing prisoners. As in Russia, Western prisoners are sometimes seen as bargaining chips in political negotiations in Belarus. For example, Russia, which forms a union state with Belarus, wants to free its compatriot, who was convicted in Germany in 2021 for a political murder in Berlin’s Tiergarten, through an exchange.
So far, there are no known cases of Belarus executing the death penalty against foreigners. However, observers assume that Lukashenko will not hand over a prisoner without something in return.
The case of the German is also an opportunity for Belarus, which is largely isolated in Europe, to establish contacts with the West. Lukashenko has not been recognized as president in the EU since the 2020 election, which was overshadowed by allegations of unprecedented fraud. The ruler celebrated his 30th anniversary in office on Saturday and received congratulations from Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, among others. He recently released several of his opponents from prison, attracting attention in the West.
The country has long been internationally criticized for its arbitrary justice system and politically motivated verdicts. More than 1,000 people are considered political prisoners in the country. The German, who comes from Berlin, has been in custody since November 2023. According to information from Vyazna, he is said to have worked for a short time as a security guard at the US embassy in Berlin before his time as a rescue worker.
Participation in “rail partisans”?
It is still unclear which explosion the imprisoned German is accused of. According to human rights activists, the case is linked to a regiment consisting mainly of Belarusian volunteers that is fighting on Kiev’s side against the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Belarus, in turn, is supporting Russia in its large-scale attack and had allowed Moscow’s troops to invade Ukraine through its territory.
After the invasion began, opponents of the Russian war of aggression in Belarus also rendered infrastructure objects such as railway lines in their own country, which were used by the Russian military, unusable. They are called rail partisans there. In Belarus, weapons and other military equipment are produced for Putin’s war against Ukraine.
