In a country where crackdowns on dissent are routine, Belarus police and protesters clashed in the capital Minsk and the city of Brest Sunday night over rising discontent with the authoritarian rule of the country’s longtime leader, who recently sought a sixth term.

Demonstrators run away from police as they gather to protest against a result of the Belarusian presidential election in Minsk, Belarus, Sunday, Aug.

Police and protesters clashed in Belarus' capital and the major city of Brest on Sunday after the presidential election in which the authoritarian leader who has ruled for a quarter-century sought a sixth term in office. .

Police block a road and use smoke grenades during a protest after the Belarusian presidential election in Minsk, Belarus, Sunday, Aug.

Belarus police and protesters clashed in the capital and the city of Brest Sunday night after a presidential election in which the country's longtime leader sought a sixth term despite rising discontent with his authoritarian rule and his cavalier dismissal of the coronavirus pandemic.

Police presence in Minsk was heavy throughout the day and in the evening police set up checkpoints on the city’s perimeter to check residence permits, apparently worried that protesters would come from other cities.

Protesters shout "Go away!" as they gather after the Belarusian presidential election in Minsk, Belarus, Sunday, Aug.

Belarus police and protesters clashed in the capital and the city of Brest Sunday night after a presidential election in which the country's longtime leader sought a sixth term despite rising discontent with his authoritarian rule and his cavalier dismissal of the coronavirus pandemic.

About 1,000 protesters gathered near the obelisk honoring Minsk as a World War II “hero city,” where police clashed with them, beating some with truncheons and later using flash-bang grenades to try to disperse them