Belarus conducts counter-terrorism operation on border with Ukraine

Belarusian authorities announced on Thursday that security forces have conducted a counter-terrorism operation in the Lelchitsky district of the Homiel region near the Ukrainian border.

"We ask the population of the district to remain calm and obey law enforcement officers' orders" during the security forces operation, the local authorities said in a statement, without explaining why they used the term counter-terrorism operation.

The Lelchitsky district of Homiel region borders Ukraine's Zhytomyr Oblast. Belarusian authorities have repeatedly accused Ukraine of sending sabotage groups to the country.

Last spring, President Alexander Lukashenko said that cases of saboteurs entering the country have become more frequent, instructing security services to prevent saboteurs from entering Belarus.

The last time Belarusian security forces conducted a counter-terrorism operation was in Oct. 2022, when the Foreign Ministry explained that they received intelligence about provocative plans against Belarus.

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko announced in 2023 that Minsk will join Russia's "special military operation" if the Ukrainian army violate the country's borders.