Belarus detains hundreds more in post-election crackdown

Police in Belarus have detained hundreds more protesters as demonstrations continued against strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko's disputed re-election.

Four nights of unrest since Sunday's vote have seen thousands arrested, dozens wounded and two people dead as police used stun grenades, tear gas, water cannon and, in at least one case, live fire to disperse protesters.

Lukashenko's opponents accuse him of rigging Sunday's election to defeat his main rival, popular opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who left the ex-Soviet country on Tuesday for neighbouring Lithuania.

Prominent Belarusians including Nobel Prize-winning author Svetlana Alexievich have condemned the violence and urged Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron grip since 1994, to step down.

For the second day in a row on Thursday, dozens of women, many dressed in white and holding flowers, formed a human chain in the capital Minsk to condemn police violence. 

The interior ministry said 700 more people had been arrested for taking part in illegal gatherings on Wednesday, bringing the total number detained since Sunday to more than 6,700. 

The ministry said there had been fewer demonstrations on...