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news sport j2 money culture scene video subscription REBELLION IN BELARUS The most massive protest against Lukashenko so far: 'There are as many as 200,000 people on the streets!' Belarus has been rocked by street protests for a week after protesters accused Lukashenko of stealing elections Writes: Jutarnji.hr, HinaPosted: August 16, 2020 8:22 pm Alexander Lukashenko TENSION IN BELARUS 'Tanks are 15 minutes from the border!': Lukashenko fears NATO, new demonstrations in Minsk CRISIS Tensions are rising in Belarus, protests are raging in the streets, Putin promised security to Lukashenko About 200,000 people gathered in the center of the Belarusian capital Minsk, at a large protest against the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko , Belarusian media report, but the agency France Presse estimates that there were more than 100,000 of them. Protesters took to the streets and other cities. image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP image Protesters in Minsk Sergei Gapon / AFP People gathered in large numbers in the center of Minsk, near the monument "Minsk-city hero", many with children and practically blocked traffic in the streets around Heroes' Square, reports the Russian agency TASS. According to Belarusian journalist Hana Ljubakova, there are more than 200,000 people on the streets of Minsk. She states that it is the largest gathering in the history of that country. "Go away!" Protesters chanted around the monument to the victims of World War II to the Belarusian leader. Daria Kuhta, 39, came with six children. "We think a new Belarus is being born and I am so happy to see it. I never thought I would see so many flags and people who are not afraid," she said. According to @tutby , more than 220,000 people gathered near Stela in Minsk. It's the largest rally in the history of #Belarus . It feels like nobody is indifferent: motorists, youth, the elderly.They are moving to the parliament, where #Lukashenko addressed state institution staffers pic.twitter.com/GcGgOLrstj - Hanna Liubakova (@HannaLiubakova) August 16, 2020 At the same time, a recording of a concert by Russian pop singer Filip Kirkorov is shown on state television . Swan Lake Belarusian style😁 # LukašenkoUhodi #LukashenkoGoAway #Belarus pic.twitter.com/ReFW5Vu5ef - NEXTA (@nexta_tv) August 16, 2020 Protesters took to the streets in other cities, in Brest, Grodno ... Recall, Russia on Sunday offered military aid to Belarus, whose leader Alexander Lukashenko rejected Western demands for a repeat of the presidential election and accused NATO of accumulating forces on the country's western border. Belarus has been rocked by street protests for a week after protesters accused Lukashenko of stealing last Sunday's election, which he denies. In #Minsk #Belarus hundreds of thousands of people March against #Lukashenko and #repression . They march simply for their right to live in a #democracy #freebelarus #nexta_tv # ЖивеБеларусь !! #LukashenkoGoAway #LukashenkoLeave # LukašenkoUhodi !! pic.twitter.com/vHhUwaQ3ZA - Zhive Belarus (@ZhiveB) August 16, 2020 Earlier, Lukashenko spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who promised the Belarusian leader that Moscow, if necessary, was ready to help him militarily in accordance with the collective security pact, the Kremlin said. Strong security forces have been deployed on the streets of Minsk after Lukashenko's supporters gathered for the first time since the election. Lukashenko, 65, said that NATO tanks and planes were deployed 15 minutes from the Belarusian border and that neighboring countries were asking for the elections to be repeated, which he persistently refused. He claimed that foreign governments were trying to overthrow him and reminded of Putin's promise to help him militarily if necessary. image Alexander Lukashenko Siarhei Leskiec / AFP "NATO forces are at our door. Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and our brotherly Ukraine are ordering us new elections," Lukashenko said, adding that Belarus would "die as a state" if there were new elections. "I have never betrayed you and I will never betray you," Lukashenko stressed in an emotional speech. His followers carried state flags and shouted "For Belarus", "For Batka", which is Lukashenko's nickname, while party songs echoed from the speakers. There were several thousand people at the rally. Opposition media reported that Lukashenko, once the manager of a state farm, had brought in buses from other parts of the country who were forced to take part in a rally. Russia, which has a turbulent relationship with Lukashenko, is closely watching what is happening in Belarus, through which strategic pipelines for transporting Russian energy to the West pass, and which Moscow sees as a buffer zone with NATO. The European Union is considering imposing sanctions in response to a violent showdown with protesters. After last Sunday's election, the first four evenings of protests tried to quell special forces, killing at least two people and wounding dozens more. Since Thursday, protests have spread and human chains and opposition rallies are springing up across the country. Large rallies are now taking place largely without arrest, and Belarusian authorities have withdrawn, announcing the release of more than 2,000 of a total of 6,700 detainees. There is a widespread belief that Alexander Lukashenko's election victory is the result of electoral fraud, while more and more supporters are his opponent Svetlana Tikhanovskaya (37), who fled to Lithuania