Belarus transgender rights organization TG House Belarus said on Friday that more than 15 LGBTQ+ individuals, including eight transgender individuals, were detained by the Belarusian authorities in the past month.

According to TG House Belarus, the individuals were arrested in several Belarusian cities for allegedly subscribing to extremist resources. TG House Belarus stated that most of the eight transgender individuals were charged for hooliganism and two individuals were charged for pornography. The organization also stated that the detainees were subjected to physical and psychological abuse and some were forced to flee the country.

On February 19, Prosecutor General of Belarus Andrei Shved announced that the Belarus government had been preparing a bill that would punish the promotion of what they deemed to be non-traditional relationships. He stated that it was important to not allow the discussion of the topic and that opponents were attempting to destroy traditional family values and, by extension, Belarus as a nation.

Relatedly, on August 5, the Council of the EU announced that existing sanctions would extend to 28 new individuals for participating in “ongoing internal repression and human rights violations in Belarus.” The 28 individuals, who were listed in a regulation on July 16, included Belarusian government officials, operators of correctional institutions, and members of the state-run media.

EU sanctions against Belarus were initially drafted in response to repression of protests following the  elections in 2020. The sanctions have been expanded and extended due to charges of ongoing human rights violations. The EU has stated that the purpose of the sanctions was to “put pressure on Belarusian political leadership to prevent further violence and repression.”