Belarus bans citizens from renewing passports abroad, spreading fear among those who fled repression

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarus’ authoritarian president banned citizens from renewing their passports while staying abroad, which could force those who fled the country amid growing repression to return to maintain their travel documents. The decree on Tuesday stated that a Belarusian passport can only be renewed where the holder was a registered resident before leaving the country. An estimated 200-300,000 Belarusians have left the country in the last three years since massive protests against an election that returned President Alexander Lukashenko to office led to a harsh crackdown on the political opposition. The election results were widely regarded as manipulated. The Belarusian human rights group Viasna counts more than 1,500 people currently behind bars as political prisoners.