MOSCOW, 20 September (BelTA) – A ceremony to present the honorary diploma of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus to Lev Dengov, the head of the Russian contact group on intra-Libyan settlement under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State Duma of Russia, aide to the head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov, was held in the Belarusian Embassy in Russia on 20 September, BelTA learned from the press service of the diplomatic mission.
“Lev Dengov has been honored in recognition of his personal contribution and active support of the efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus to release the Belarusian citizens held captive in Libya,” the diplomatic mission noted.
When presenting the award, Minister-Counsellor of the Belarusian Embassy Vadim Senyuta stressed that in the face of a difficult situation, the absence of a legitimate central government in Libya, Lev Dengov visited the country to negotiate the release of the Belarusian citizens and made a significant contribution to their release and bringing them home.
According to the embassy, Lev Dengov helped free Belarusian citizens Vyacheslav Kachura, Sergei Zdota, and Inna Babich, who served as health workers in Libya. Vyacheslav Kachura was detained by militants during an assault on the Libyan capital in August 2011. He was forcibly held in Libya through February 2018.
Inna Babich and Sergei Zdota worked in Libya since 2010. Once their contracts expired, they were detained by unknown armed persons. Their documents were taken away and the Belarusians could not leave the city of Zintan where they were captured. They were freed in December 2017.
