Belarus President Lukashenko to seek re-election next year

(ANSA-AFP) - MOSCOW, 25 FEB - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who has held power since 1994, said on Sunday he intended to seek re-election next year, which could extend his grip on the country to 36 years. He was speaking on the day Belarus, a neighbour and ally of Russia, held parliamentary elections decried as a sham by the opposition. "Tell them I will run in the (2025) election," Lukashenko said, according to a social media channel run by his team.
    Sunday's ballot is the first nationwide poll since the presidential election of 2020. That vote sparked huge protests against Lukashenko, who is widely believed to have rigged the result to extend his decades-long rule. The president has since orchestrated a huge crackdown on dissent, jailing hundreds of opponents and forcing thousands into exile. There are no real opposition candidates in Sunday's parliamentary elections.
    Lukashenko's exiled opponents have urged Belarusians to stay at home and boycott the vote. Lukashenko warned the authorities had "learnt our lesson" since the 2020 protests and there would be "no rebellions" during Sunday's election. (ANSA-AFP).