A German national, Rico Krieger, has been sentenced to death in Belarus after being convicted of terrorism and mercenary activities.
According to CNN, the Belarusian human rights organization, Human Rights Center ‘Viasna’ made this disclosure.
The 29-year-old, who was employed by the German Red Cross as an emergency medical technician and had previously worked as an armed security officer at the US Embassy in Berlin, was sentenced by the Minsk Regional Court on June 24.
Viasna reported that Krieger faced charges under six different articles of the Belarusian Criminal Code.
These charges included ‘mercenary activity’, ‘agent activity’, ‘act of terrorism’, ‘creation of an extremist formation’ ‘intentional disrepair of a vehicle or communication lines’, and ‘illegal actions related to firearms, ammunition, and explosives’.
The allegations against Krieger included arranging an explosion intended to influence decision-making by authorities, intimidate the public, and destabilize public order. Details on the circumstances of these alleged crimes remain unclear.
The German Foreign Office confirmed that they are providing consular support to Krieger and are working closely with Belarusian authorities on his behalf. .
“The death penalty is a cruel and inhumane form of punishment that Germany rejects under all circumstances. We are actively working worldwide to abolish it and are strongly advocating against its execution in all affected cases,” a spokesperson from the German Foreign Office stated.
Belarus has assured consular access to Krieger, with Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Anatoly Glaz stating, “There have been contacts with the German side on this topic, of course. This criminal is a German citizen and we understand the German side’s concern for him. Consultations on this topic are being held by the foreign ministries of the two countries.”
The German Red Cross confirmed that Krieger had previously worked with them, though his current situation was unrelated to his role with the organization.
Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya expressed her concern on social media, saying, “I am concerned by news that German citizen Rico Krieger was sentenced to death by Lukashenko’s regime in Belarus. We are collecting more information on his case at the moment. From what we know, he was accused of several so-called ‘extremism’ related crimes.”
