MINSK, January 25. /TASS/. The Investigative Committee of Belarus (ICB) has launched special in-absentia proceedings against 20 individuals located abroad who are accused of conspiring to seize power and promoting extremism, the ICB wrote on its Telegram channel.

"The Investigative Committee commenced a special proceeding against the so-called 20 Analysts of [Svetlana] Tikhanovskaya who engaged in a conspiracy in order to unconstitutionally seize power in the Republic of Belarus and joined extremist groups working to enhance the efficiency of criminal activity," the ICB said.

According to the investigation, the defendants played an active role in "developing and implementing the concept of destructive activity aimed at causing harm to the national security of the Republic of Belarus" and contributed to stirring up enmity and discord within society. The Belarusian Investigative Committee suggested that the 20 individuals contact investigators.

Earlier, Belarusian lawmakers introduced a mechanism for initiating special proceedings in absentia against accused people who are located outside of Belarus.

Tikhanovskaya ran as an opposition candidate in Belarus’ 2020 presidential election and came in a distant second, but never conceded or recognized the final election results.