Protesters flood Belarusian capital; Lukashenko seen in body armour

Tens of thousands of protesters flooded the Belarusian capital on Sunday even as they defied military orders. They have been demanding that Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko should step down.

The crowd marched towards Lukashenko's residence at the Independence Palace in Minsk, on the northern edge of the capital, the majority gathering at some distance, while a smaller group approached to between 10 and 20 metres of the building

The veteran leader denounced the demonstrators as "rats" and was seen in state media footage wearing body armour and holding a rifle, projecting an unyielding image amid the huge nationwide demonstrations that erupted after a disputed election on August 9.

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The protests have provided the biggest challenge yet to Lukashenko's 26 years at the helm and tested the loyalty of his security forces.

Minsk's streets turned red and white on Sunday as demonstrators carried flags symbolising their opposition to Lukashenko and chanted for him to leave power and for new elections to be held.

Lukashenko, a former Soviet state farm boss, was shown in state media footage flying over the protests in a helicopter before landing at his residence and emerging in body armour with a rifle in his hand.

Some protesters milling below chanted "coward" as a helicopter was seen flying out of the residence, a Reuters witness said.

Later, a video circulated by state media showed Lukashenko walking over to riot police outside his residence and thanking them, eliciting an outburst of applause from security staff.

It was the first time in this month's demonstrations that protesters have neared the building's doors. The approach to the palace took place after a crowd estimated by a Reuters witness to number as many as 200,000 rallied in central Minsk for the second weekend in a row.

The crowd began to disperse in early evening. Reuters witnessed no clashes with police.

"They have scattered like rats," Lukashenko could be heard saying in a video clip published by the Belta news agency as he flew overhead.

Belarus state television said 20,000 people took part in the protest.

Protests triggered by Lukashenko's claims of a landslide election victory found a leader in opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, a former teacher who took her jailed husband's place on the ballot.

Following threats to her safety, Tsikhanouskaya fled to neighbouring Lithuania.

Tsikhanouskaya, who speaks Russian at home, has said she would like to see Belarus maintain close relations with Russia, but that Belarus should remain independent and not integrate further into Russia.