Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said Friday it had filed a complaint at the International Criminal Court over an "unprecedented crackdown" on journalists by Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko.
RSF called on ICC prosecutor Karim Khan to investigate alleged crimes against humanity in Belarus on journalists they say have been "systematically persecuted".
The watchdog said it had documented arbitrary arrests of nearly 400 journalists since August 2020, with 43 journalists still in prison in Belarus.
Repression by the authorities has driven many Belarusian reporters to flee to Poland and Lithuania, said RSF, adding, "forced exile alone is classified as a crime against humanity".
The alleged actions by Belarus authorities "clearly constitute crimes against humanity of imprisonment, persecution and forced displacement of Belarusian journalists due to their work", RSF said in a statement.
In September, Lithuania said it had asked Khan to probe alleged crimes against humanity in a crackdown on opponents of Lukashenko.
Khan's office is conducting a preliminary examination but noted that a referral by an ICC member state does not always lead to the opening of a formal investigation.
On Sunday, the moustachioed 70-year-old Lukashenko is running for a seventh mandate to extend his 30-year stranglehold on power, during which he has crushed all opposition.
The European Parliament has called on the international community not to recognise the result.
"The electoral farce will likely proceed without a hitch, free from the counterweight of independent media, ensuring Lukashenko's victory over four puppet candidates," said RSF.