After months of uncertainty surrounding the fate of Anzhelika Melnikava, a new and deeply troubling lead has emerged. The Belarusian opposition figure, who disappeared after leaving Warsaw in March 2025, has reportedly been identified in photographs taken at a fitness club in Minsk. The images, which surfaced almost exactly on the first anniversary of her disappearance, suggest that the former leader of the opposition’s émigré structures may now be on Belarusian territory.
Melnikava was one of the most prominent figures in the Belarusian opposition in exile. She served as chair of the Coordination Council of Belarus, a body created after the events of 2020 as a political representation of circles opposing Alyaksandr Lukashenko’s regime. Her disappearance caused major concern, all the more so because she had been living in Poland and the case quickly took on not only a political but also an international dimension.
The new photographs appeared through posts shared by a fitness trainer in Minsk. Screenshots from the trainer’s Instagram stories were sent to the bot of the Ukrainian Telegram channel BalaganOFF and were later analyzed by journalists from The Insider and Euroradio. Several people who know Melnikava reportedly confirmed that she is the person visible in the images. An additional identifying feature is said to be a tattoo on her left arm, made during her time in Poland, which according to the authors of the investigation indicates that the photos are recent.
Journalists also attempted to verify both the fitness club and the trainer who published the images. The Insider reported that it contacted the facility by phone and confirmed that the instructor exists, but no comment could be obtained from her. A man who answered the phone also refused to respond to questions and did not help establish contact with Melnikava herself. This means that although the photographic material significantly strengthens the suspicion that she is in Minsk, the case still lacks a full official explanation.
The background to the entire story has been unusually complicated from the beginning. When the case became public in late March 2025, Melnikava’s associates said they had lost contact with her on March 25, and Polish services launched proceedings into her disappearance. Reuters reported at the time that, according to Pavel Latushka, the opposition activist’s phone had been traced to Belarusian territory. The Polish prosecutor’s office opened an investigation, also examining the possibility that she had been unlawfully deprived of her liberty.
In the months that followed, further controversy surrounded the case. The Insider previously reported that after leaving Poland, Melnikava had allegedly spent time in the United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, and the United Arab Emirates, while questions also arose over money transfers from a foundation supporting the work of the Coordination Council. In a separate investigation, the outlet also described her relationship with a man presented as an officer of the Belarusian security services. These findings did not resolve the matter; on the contrary, they showed how closely the fate of one of the faces of the Belarusian political emigration had become intertwined with the regime and its security apparatus.
The latest photos from Minsk therefore do not close this story, but instead open a new and even more disturbing chapter. If they do indeed show Anzhelika Melnikava, it would mean that the woman whose disappearance remained a mystery for a year may now be in the very heart of the state she once fled. For the Belarusian opposition, this would be an alarming signal: even exile and life in Poland do not guarantee full safety from the shadow of Lukashenko’s regime.
