By Our House, February 25, 2026
We are hurrying to share with you truly important and joyful news.
This is our shared Victory.
Belarusian conscientious objector Hleb has been granted legal status in Lithuania — he has received a humanitarian residence permit.
We would like to recall this terrible story.
Belarusian conscientious objector Hleb was previously recognized in Lithuania as a threat to national security and for several months lived there without legal status, hiding from the migration authorities. He was denied political asylum in Lithuania. As a result, he faced the direct threat of deportation to a Belarusian prison due to his refusal to serve in the army and his participation in the Belarusian protests of 2020. For several months, he lived without documents, hiding from deportation, and stayed in our shelter.
Together with Hleb, we re-submitted his application for political asylum in Lithuania.
This process was accompanied by severe stress for the young Belarusian. Hleb was detained by the migration authorities and forcibly placed in a closed refugee center, where he spent three days. With the help of a lawyer, we managed to secure his release and get him out, but the very fact of short-term detention without a phone or contact with the outside world became a serious ordeal for him.
A decision on his repeated asylum application was expected on November 3, 2025. It was at that moment that you responded to our call for solidarity and sent letters en masse to the Lithuanian migration authorities, the Human Rights Ombudsperson, and other Lithuanian institutions. Our logic was simple: if the decision were positive, the letters would do no harm; if negative, they could save Hleb’s life and freedom.
Objectively, our collective wave of support letters unsettled the Lithuanian migration authorities and made them reconsider.
Instead of a quick repeated refusal of asylum, Hleb’s case received additional attention, new checks were initiated, and for the first time he underwent an official vulnerability assessment. It confirmed his medical limitations and vulnerable situation — factors that had previously not been taken into account.
Today, we can say the most important thing: thanks to you, there will be no deportation.
The Lithuanian migration authorities recognized that Hleb’s return to Беларусь would be unsafe and decided to grant him a humanitarian residence permit. This means:
- Hleb is fully legally present in Lithuania;
- he has the right to work, study, receive medical care, and access the social system;
- he will be issued a foreigner’s passport in Lithuania;
- his status will be extended as long as the risks remain — the war in Ukraine and the existing regime in Беларусь.
Yes, this is not yet political asylum for Hleb, and our struggle for full status for the young Belarusian continues.
But what matters most is this: for the first time in our memory, a Belarusian conscientious objector who had previously been labeled a “threat to national security” and was effectively subject to forced removal has received legal humanitarian status in Lithuania.
This is a precedent. And it became possible only because of your solidarity and your support.
Your letters forced the ruthless Lithuanian state machine to pause and reconsider its decision. Your financial support enabled us to maintain the shelter where Hleb could remain safe during the most difficult months, when migration authorities were searching for him in order to deport him to Беларусь.
Therefore, this is not only a victory for “Our House” and Hleb. It is a shared victory — of everyone who wrote letters, supported, donated, spread information, and did not remain indifferent.
We continue the struggle for recognition of the right to refuse military service and for the protection of Belarusian conscientious objectors and deserters who face deportation, loss of liberty, and torture.
We will not give up.
Thank you for standing with us.
With warmth,
The Team of “Our House”
The post A Shared Victory: Belarusian Conscientious Objector Hleb Granted Legal Status in Lithuania appeared first on World BEYOND War.
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