Political persecution:
In November 2020, Ihar Iljaš was arrested for 15 days for “participating in picketing.”
In July 2021, he was arrested for 15 days during mass searches and detentions of independent journalists.
On 22 October 2024, it became known that Ihar Iljaš was detained in Minsk. As seen in the video footage of the apartment break-in, four police commandos were deployed to detain him.
On 22 October, a Telegram channel linked to the security services published a video with Ihar Iljaš. In the teaser, the authors of the channel wrote: “Following the steps of his wife. This Polish journalist-spy, together with his wife, was involved in promoting extremist formations and collecting information for foreign intelligence. His spouse has been in prison for extremism and state treason for a long time while her husband was still at large, as his activities were carefully documented. We have corrected this blatant injustice.”
On 30 October 2024, it became known that Ihar Iljaš was transferred to the pre-trial detention centre in Kaliadzičy. It means that he has been officially charged with a crime.
On November 22, 2024, Ihar Iljaš was recognized as a political prisoner.
On 21 February, the Minsk City Court began the criminal trial of Ihar Iljaš. He is accused under Article 369-1 (discrediting Belarus) and Part 2, Article 361-4 (facilitating extremist activities).
On 12 March, it became known that the Minsk City Court had paused the criminal trial of Ihar Iljaš. Journalist Siarhiej Vahanaŭ, the grandfather of Iljaš’s wife, political prisoner Kaciaryna Andrejeva (Bachvałava), wrote on Facebook: “A break has now been announced because, at the request of the state prosecutor, the court has sent Ihar’s analytical publications in the media to an expert from an extrajudicial expert organization, Professor, Doctor of Philology, and Head of the Department at the Faculty of Philology at BSU, S. I. Lebiadzinski. However, Ihar and his lawyer had petitioned for an expert review at the State Center for Forensic Examinations, but the court denied their request. As a result, the court and all of us are now awaiting the results of the expert review.” News of Ihar Iljaš’s arrest first surfaced on 22 October 2024. Ihar Iljaš is a journalist who, along with his wife, journalist Kaciaryna Andrejeva (Bachvałava) (currently a political prisoner), co-authored the book Belarusian Donbas (2020) about Belarusians’ participation in the war in eastern Ukraine. In March 2021, a court declared the book “extremist.”
On 4 and 5 September, the Minsk City Court heard in an open session the findings of a linguistic examination of publications by imprisoned journalist Ihar Iljaš. The assessment had been prepared over several months by Siarhiej Lebiadzinski, Doctor of Philological Sciences, who heads the Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Russian as a Foreign Language at the Faculty of Philology of Belarusian State University. Journalist Siarhiej Vahanaŭ, grandfather of Iljaš’s wife, fellow imprisoned journalist Kaciaryna Andrejeva, described on his Facebook page the court proceedings of 4 and 5 September. In his view, the expert evaluation of Iljaš’s publications was based on Mr Liebiadzinski’s political beliefs rather than objective analysis. Vahanaŭ noted: “For example, the expert considers it inappropriate for a journalist or political analyst to use the term ‘political prisoners’ because such a concept does not exist in Belarusian legislation. That’s right, it does not exist in Belarusian law, but it does exist in international political science, as does the term ‘political emigration’. Yet, according to the expert, one should instead use the expression ‘fugitive oppositionists’. Similarly, the word ‘dictatorship’, which is regularly used by representatives of the authorities themselves, including the head of state, was declared entirely unacceptable. […] Nor, according to the expert, should the phrase ‘war against Ukraine’ be used; it must be described instead as a ‘war against the Kyiv regime’ rather than against the people. As proof, he claimed that Russian troops ‘do not capture – or rather, do not liberate – cities because they are concerned about the population living there’.”
On 12 September, the Minsk City Court held another open hearing in Ihar Iljaš’s case, in which he faces charges of “discrediting the state” and “assisting an extremist formation”. The judge announced the conclusion of the investigation phase and the beginning of closing arguments. The prosecution requested a prison sentence of four years and a fine of 100 base units. The defence called for acquittal. In his final statement, Iljaš rejected all charges and pleaded not guilty.
Creative activity:
Born on 18 July 1988.
Journalist, a philosopher by education, co-author of the documentary book Belarusian Donbas (K. Andrejeva, I. Iljaš. Belorussky Donbas. 2020. ISBN: 978-966-03-9020-1), written together with his wife Kaciaryna Andrejeva (Bachvalava) – she has been in prison since 2020 due to a politically motivated case.
The book was labelled “extremist” in Belarus in 2021.
The book Belarusian Donbas contains the stories of Belarusian citizens who fought on the side of Ukraine and Russian occupation forces since 2014.
Publications:
K. Andrejeva, I. Iljaš. Belorussky Donbas. 2020. ISBN: 978-966-03-9020-1
Place of detention:
Pre-trial detention centre No. 1, Navadvorski village council, 143/4, Paškovičy, Minsk district, Minsk region, 223016.