MINSK 17 Aug (ANA) - State TV staff in Belarus have walked out as part of strike action over the disputed re-election of President Alexander Lukashenko.

 

TV channels ran repeats when staff walked out in protest against censorship and the election results.

 

Other strike action is expected after a weekend when an opposition rally in the capital Minsk drew tens of thousands.

 

Opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has meanwhile suggested she could act as an interim leader.

 

Opposition leaders called for the strikes as anger grew over reports of police violence as well as alleged poll-rigging in the 9 August vote.

 

But the country's long-time authoritarian president, who claimed a landslide victory, remains defiant, telling his supporters on Sunday to defend their country and independence.

 

Mr Lukashenko has led the former Soviet republic since 1994, maintaining close relations with neighbouring Russia, on which Belarus heavily relies for energy supplies.(ANA)

FA/ANA/17 August 2020------