The United Kingdom has sanctioned four individuals and three entities from Belarus in coordinated action with international partners, in response to human rights violations and ongoing facilitation of Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine; the corresponding decision was published on the official site of the British government on Friday.

"The UK has today (9 August) sanctioned a further 7 individuals and entities on the fourth anniversary of the deeply flawed 2020 presidential elections in Belarus in coordinated action with international partners, taking the total number of sanctions against Belarus to over 200," it said.

The list of individuals sanctioned by the UK includes Denis Tolstenkov, commanding officer of penal colony 4 (Gomel), Andrei Palchik, former head of penal colony 1 (Novopolotsk), Filipp Sturchenko, commanding officer of penal colony 3 (Vitba, Vitebsk district), and Alexei Lazarenko, commanding officer of penal colony 15 (Mogilev).

The list of sanctioned companies includes OJSC StankoGomel, a Belarusian machine tool manufacturer; JSC NIIEVM, a Government of Belarus affiliated entity; Ruchservomotor LLC, a Belarusian machine tool manufacturer.

Alongside sanctions, the UK is announcing planned funding of GBP 2.5 million this financial year to supporting Belarusian human rights and civil society causes, including further funding to the International Accountability Platform Belarus - a coalition that collect, verify, and preserve evidence of gross human rights violations constituting crimes under international law allegedly committed by Belarusian authorities.