Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has issued an amnesty for thousands of prisoners, on the anniversary of the liberation of the capital Minsk from Nazi occupation.
The World War II anniversary was also celebrated with a military parade on Wednesday.
Deputy Interior Minister Gennady Kazakevich said earlier that 7,850 convicts would be covered by the amnesty, according to the Belarusian media.
Independent Belarusian media in exile reported however that the text of the amnesty means it is unlikely to cover political opponents of Lukashenko, who is sometimes referred to as Europe's last dictator.
Lukashenko announced on Tuesday that political prisoners suffering from cancer, for example, could be released from prison on humanitarian grounds.
Following the violently suppressed protests against the results of the 2020 presidential election, hundreds of Lukashenko's opponents were sentenced to long prison terms.
Lukashenko, who is celebrating his 30th year in office this year, had himself declared president again after the vote, which was overshadowed by wide-scale fraud.
Many members of the opposition fled abroad.
The human rights centre Viasna recently reported that there were 90 seriously ill prisoners; there are also around 65 political prisoners over the age of 60 behind bars who have serious health problems.
As of Tuesday, 1,409 political prisoners were officially registered in Belarus. According to Viasna, dissidents are still being detained in the country, and there are allegations of torture taking place in the country's prisons.
According to the amnesty document, pregnant women and minors, single parents with children and prisoners who have reached retirement age are to be released.
