Protests continue in Belarus, but doubts show as strikes come under pressure

Protests calling for Belarus' leader Alexander Lukashenko to step down took place again in the capital Minsk on Wednesday, but for the first time in a week riot police reappeared on the streets as authorities seemed to take steps to regain momentum against the protests. The announcement of a wave of strikes at some of Belarus' largest manufacturing plants last week produced some of the momentum to the protests that culminated in Sunday's massive demonstrations in Minsk, viewed as a signal that the workers long considered Lukashenko's base were also turning on him. But on Tuesday when ABC News reporters visited the factory -- a vast complex with 16,000 staff -- workers supportive of the protest said the numbers willing to strike had shrunk dramatically. Workers said they were unsure how many people were striking in the factory, but that it had fallen from around 10,000 on the first day to far less -- perhaps less than 2,000.