
The British government have advised flights to avoid Belarussian airspace.
The EU needs to react strongly to Belarus with sanctions being considered, according to Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
A number of countries are pushing for Belarussian flights to be banned from EU airspace after a Ryanair flight was grounded in Minsk in order to arrest a journalist.
EU leaders are meeting in Brussels this evening where the issue will now be high on the agenda.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin says the bloc has to act:
Former Justice Minister Laois/Offaly TD Charlie Flanagan says incidents like this cannot be allowed to happen within the EU: