Interior Minister says suspects of terrorism allegedly entered Georgia illegally
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Georgia’s Minister of Internal Affairs Giorgi Gakharia says that based on preliminary information, the suspects of a large-scale anti-terrorist operation in Tbilisi allegedly arrived illegally in Georgia.
The minister referred to the three killed and one detained suspects who claimed the life of a Georgian special unit serviceman and wounded four others, in a large-scale counter-terrorism operation in the outskirts of Tbilisi on November 22.
All details are being specified now and all questions will be answered in the coming days. I can say that based on the preliminary information, the suspects used an illegal route to enter Georgia,” Gakharia said.
The minister stated that Georgian law enforcers are coping with all existing challenges and no special security activities are planned for the New Year holiday.
We have already hosted very important international events, with the heads of several states, and law enforcers provided a high-level of security,” Gakharia said.
Georgian and Turkish media speculate that one out of the three killed suspects is Ahmed Chataev, a Russian citizen of Chechen origin connected with the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS).
The man was named as a mastermind of a terrorist attack in the Ataturk Airport in Turkey in 2016, claiming 48 lives, three perpetrators among them.
The only detained suspect is a Russian citizen. His lawyer says he denies any links with terrorists.
The State Security Service of Georgia announced a short time ago that the special operation to arrest suspected terrorists in Tbilisi has officially ended. The officer from the Special Operations Forces, who wounded during the operation, died in hospital.
The Georgian officer who died in an anti-terror operation earlier this week has been buried in a poignant funeral service in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
One suspected terrorist has been arrested and three killed during today’s anti-terrorist operation on Gabriel Salosi Street in Tbilisi, the State Security Service announced a short time ago. Nino Giorgobiani, press speaker of the State Security Service, described in a detailed statement how the operation was conducted and how many people were arrested.
Georgia’s Chief Prosecutor’s Office has charged the only surviving suspect of a large-scale anti-terror operation in Tbilisi for terrorist activities.
The Government of Georgia has handed a fully furnished apartment to the killed Georgian special unit serviceman Ivane Goloshvili’s family.