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A Canadian journalist has been arrested in the Belarussian capital Minsk, the Canadian government said Friday.
"The department of foreign affairs was informed last night of the arrest of a young freelance journalist in Minsk," a department spokeswoman said, refusing to name the reporter.
The francophone newspaper La Presse in Montreal, told AFP the arrested journalist was Frederic Lavoie who was detained in a police raid on October Square.
The British consulate in Minsk, which represents Canadian interests in Belarus, contacted Belarus officials and the reporter to offer assistance, the Canadian official said.
Canada's foreign affairs department is keeping Lavoie's family "informed of developments," the official added.
The Belarus police made widespread arrests Friday in October Square, where protestors had set up camp to oppose the controversial re-election Sunday of President Alexander Lukashenko.
A correspondent for French newspaper Liberation, Lorraine Millot, who covered the protests, was also arrested but later released, officials said.
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AFP 242136 GMT 03 06
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