Anti-government protesters flocked to central Minsk for the 12th successive weekend of rallies to call for the resignation of President Alexander Lukashenko. Belarusian media said arrests had been made.

"Several people have been arrested for participating in an unauthorized mass event," Natalia Ganusevich, a spokeswoman for the Minsk police, confirmed to Sputnik.

She added that police officers had fired warning shots "to prevent law-breaking." She did not comment on media reports that claimed police had fired rubber bullets at the ground in front of protesters.

Thousands of demonstrators reassembled into smaller groups after running into police in the center of Minsk and headed toward the city’s eastern outskirts, according to Belarusian media.