Two Georgians detained in Abkhazia

Two Georgian citizens have been illegally detained in breakaway Abkhazia’s Gali district, says Georgia’s Interior Ministry.

The Agency said the two young men, west Georgia residents Zaur Shvangiradze and Levan Bughashvili were detained in Gali several days ago. The men were currently in a remand centre in Sokhumi in Abkhazia’s capital city.

The Interior Ministry said the men were illegally detained by Abkhazia’s de-facto government.

The Ministry informed the European Union’s Monitoring Mission in Georgia about unlawful detention.

Shvangiradze and Bughashvili allegedly went to Abkhazia to pick nuts. The men’s families found out about the pair’s detention a few days ago. Until it was confirmed Shvangiradze and Bughashvili had been detained, their families did not know of their whereabouts.

Abkhazia is one of Georgia’s two Russian-occupied regions.