Authorities in Belarus have arrested 6,000 people following violent protests triggered by the re-election of longtime President Alexander Lukashenko, reported CNN. 

Thousands of Belarus citizens have taken to the streets of Minsk after exit polls showed Lukashenko receiving 80% of the votes. 

Opposition groups are demanding a recount, claiming that elections were marred by widespread ballot stuffing and fraud in order to keep Lukashenko, who has been ruling Belarus for 26 years, in power.

Belarus’ Press Association, in a statement, said that over 50 journalists have been detained or injured during the protests. 

The police have deployed tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds in the capital after key ring roads and streets were blocked by demonstrators on Monday evening. 

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, in a statement condemning the violence, said, “The use of force during protests should always be exceptional and a measure of last resort, clearly differentiating between any violent individuals and peaceful protesters, against whom force should not be used.” 

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the opposition favourite, who stood in for her husband as an opposition candidate after he was jailed in the run-up to the vote, fled the country earlier this week. According to CNN, her decision to leave was made in part to free nine people associated with her campaign who have been arrested.