Human Rights Defenders Report at Least 183 Detained in “Hajun Case”

At least 183 people have been held in custody in the “Hajun case,” the Viasna Human Rights Center reports. This figure includes only confirmed defendants; in reality, the number of detainees is much higher. The previous update from human rights defenders in early February cited at least 175 detainees.

It is known that a number of people have been detained since the beginning of the year. Trials in the “Hajun case” are taking place almost every day. The Interior Ministry has added 155 people convicted of “assisting extremism” to its “extremists list.” Most of them were involved in the “Hajun case.”

According to human rights defenders, most defendants are sentenced to so-called “home chemistry,” a form of restricted freedom, although there are cases in which individuals have been given prison terms.

“Belarusian Hajun” was a monitoring OSINT project tracking the military activity of Russian and Belarusian forces. The monitoring group was created before the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war by activist Anton Matolka. In early February 2025, security forces gained access to the project’s chatbot. After that, the project announced it was ceasing operations.