The Saga of Ryanair Flight 4978

Last week, when the pilots on a commercial flight headed for Lithuania told passengers they were about to make an unexpected landing in the Belarusian capital of Minsk many were confused — except Roman Protasevich.

The 26-year-old dissident journalist and one Belarus’s biggest enemies sensed what was about to happen.

How and why did Belarus force down the plane and arrest Mr. Protasevich? And what comes next? 

Guest: Anton Troianovski, the Moscow bureau chief for The New York Times. 

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Background reading: 

• The forced landing of a commercial flight on Sunday has put Belarus and its authoritarian leader, Aleksandr Lukashenko, in a new global spotlight. Here’s what you need to know.
• Disgusted by the brutality of Mr. Lukashenko, Mr. Protasevich bravely embarked at 16 on a life in opposition.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.