The incident at Machulishchi airport involved a suspected terrorist act and an attempted disruption of a Russian A-50 radar reconnaissance aircraft. Belarusian state media, citing the KGB, reported these events as part of an ongoing criminal proceeding against the defendants.
All defendants reportedly faced charges under section 3 of article 289 of the Belarusian Criminal Code, with penalties that in the most serious scenario include the death penalty.
Approximately 30 individuals are named in the terrorist act case, described by the KGB of Belarus as involving an organized group allegedly directed by foreign intelligence services to strike the airport.
On March 7, President Alexander Lukashenko stated that the attack aimed to sabotage and destroy the A-50 long-range radar aircraft at Machulishchi airfield. He said the aircraft sustained no substantial damage and remained able to fulfill its duties. These aircraft are reported to participate in the ongoing military activities in Ukraine.
On March 11, Deputy Head of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs Gennady Kazakevich described the operation to thwart the attack as a result of close collaboration among the KGB and the Ministry of Defense. He noted that the crime scene extended beyond the airport itself to a nearby settlement, which was subsequently closed to the public.
Security forces also identified the likely launch site for the drones and recovered items tied to the attempted attack, including a bag, control panels, interactive eyewear, and a repeater.
In a March 31 address to the National Assembly and the public, Lukashenko announced that 30 people had been detained in connection with the A-50 case and praised the operation as a model of effectiveness. He remarked that the foreign colleagues of the saboteur admired Belarusian special services and claimed that the arrest had been conducted swiftly. He added that the operation would be remembered in textbooks and declared that those involved were now behind bars.
Earlier, on March 7, the Belarusian KGB attributed the incident to Ukrainian special services. Lukashenko also stated on that day that the A-50 aircraft had sustained only minor damage, such as scratches and a small hole in the fuselage, which did not hinder its mission capability. He asserted that such operations require presidential and commander-in-chief approval. A Ukrainian adviser to the presidential office, Mikhail Podolyak, described the incident as an attempt by local partisans to target the plane.
Legal developments continued on March 25 with amendments to Belarus’s Criminal Code that introduced the death penalty for treason among civil servants and the military. Belarus remains the only European country where capital punishment is applied. Historical data indicate that from 1990 to 2021, more than 400 individuals were executed in Belarus, with death sentences commonly associated with murder or terrorism offenses.
The legal framework also outlined that acts such as initiating a war of aggression, genocide, use of weapons of mass destruction, killing prisoners of war, treason involving murder, or sabotage resulting in serious consequences can carry the death penalty for security personnel. However, none of these articles necessarily mandates capital punishment, highlighting a nuanced and evolving set of legal provisions in the country’s penal code. (Source: Belarusian authorities and related state communications)