Ever since the criticized presidential election on August 9 - which according to official but highly questionable figures was won by the incumbent Alexander Lukashenko - the opposition has demonstrated with demands for his resignation and a new election.
Also on Sunday, tens of thousands flocked to the streets and squares of the capital Minsk and other cities, while security forces mobilized, metro stations were closed, roads blocked and mobile traffic restricted.
The opposition has called for a general strike starting on Monday to put pressure on 66-year-old Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994.
Several arrested
Protesters in Minsk chanted "Strike", waved the country's old red and white flag - which is a symbol of the opposition - and hit drums.
According to the human rights organization Vesna, almost 160 people were arrested in Minsk during the day.
Two local journalists were arrested, among others, according to a local journalists' organization.
Dozens of protesters were arrested in the western Belarusian city of Lida, who were also hit by tear gas from security forces, the Russian state news agency Ria reports.
Opposition leader and presidential candidate Svetlana Tichanovskaya, who lives in exile in Lithuania, wrote in a statement that a general strike would break out on Monday unless the regime lived up to the "people's ultimatum".
"Today, the regime has once again shown Belarusians that violence is the only thing it is capable of," she wrote on the Telegram messaging service on Sunday.
"That is why a national strike will begin tomorrow, October 26," she continues.
Unclear how many
But she admits it is unclear how many will actually go on strike.
Many Belarusians are afraid of the authorities' threats and pressure and are afraid of losing their jobs, she said during a visit to Copenhagen on Friday.
-We do not organize the strikes ourselves, it is up to people to decide on their own whether they are ready or not.
The United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and Canada have all imposed sanctions on the regime since the election.
Russia, on the other hand, has sided with Lukashenko.