Moscow (CNN) A court in Belarus sentenced two journalists with the independent Belsat TV channel to two years in prison for live-streaming a demonstration, their employer and Belarussian Association of Journalists said in statements following the court hearing Thursday. Journalists Darya Chultsova, 23, and Yekaterina Andreyeva, 27, were detained in November while covering a demonstration in memory of an opposition activist who died in Minsk a few days before. Local media reported that the activist, Roman Bondarenko, apparently died from injuries sustained after being beaten by riot police. The court on Thursday ruled that Chultsova and Andreyeva are guilty of "organizing a demonstration that grossly violates public order." According to the investigators, Belsat reported, the journalists allegedly gathered protesters by talking about it on air, which then led to "interruptions of public transport in the area."

Source: CNN February 18, 2021 13:37 UTC