International media react to June 20 developments in Tbilisi
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International media outlets have responded to the June 20 developments in Tbilisi where people held a protest rally during the visit of Russian MPs to Tbilisi.
Protesters have attempted to storm Georgia's parliament during a mass rally against a speech inside the chamber by a Russian lawmaker,’ the BBC writes, adding that ‘Riot police stopped them from entering the building, reportedly using tear gas and rubber bullets.’
The BBC reports that Georgian opposition MPs called for protests in response to Russian MP Gavrilov’s decision to deliver a speech from the parliamentary speaker's seat.
Reuters says that the scenes flared up suddenly in Tbilisi ‘after public anger over the visit and speech of a member of the Russian lower house of parliament triggered big street protests.’
The Guardian reports that Sergei Gavrilov's support for independence for the Georgian region of Abkhazia and his support of Russian president Vladimir Putin has stoked animosity in Georgia.
Georgia and Russia fought a war in 2008, after which Russia recognised two breakaway Georgian regions, South Ossetia and Abkhazia,’ the Guardian states.
CNN reported that some protesters emerged injured from skirmishes with law enforcement, while others had taken law enforcement officers’ shields and riot gear.
Three Russian MPs had come to the capital of Tbilisi to participate in the 26th Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy which was held for the first time in the country.
NBCNEWS was live during last night's protests in Tbilisi.
The event was interrupted by a strong protest from the Georgian public and opposition after one of the visiting MPs addressed the audience of the assembly from the Georgian parliamentary speaker’s chair.
The protest lasted all night long.
17 civilians and 38 police officers were injured during the rally yesterday on central Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, two of them lost eyesight [in one eye].
The Georgian media reported that the number of journalists, cameramen and photographers representing a number of local news organisations is increasing after the recent clash in central Tbilisi.
Police used water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse rally on Rusteveli Avenue. Police Special Forces have marched on the Rustaveli Avenue in central Tbilisi where the demonstrators had gathered to protest June 20 incident in the parliament of Georgia.
The Healthcare Ministry has reported that 17 civilians and 38 police officers have been injured after in a late night clash in front of the parliament of Georgia as law enforcers used tear gas and rubber bullets to prevent the protesters from entering the building. The protesters were leaving the demonstration after the clash but soon they returned and continued rallying.
Political figures and citizen activists were in full force outside the Parliament of Georgia in Tbilisi on June 20, to protest an appearance of Sergey Gavrilov, a member of the Russian State Duma, in the Georgian lawmaking body.
Gavrilov, who headed the Russian delegation for the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy - hosted in Tbilisi - took a seat of the chairman of the parliament in the capital, which angered the political opposition and citizens at the time of occupation of two of Georgian regions by the Russian military.
Russian MP Sergey Gavrilov, whose address in the Georgian parliament sparked demonstrations in Tbilisi yesterday, says that the unrest was beforehand planned “by radical Georgian opposition forces,” who used the presence of Russian MPs in the parliament building as a reason to start anti-government rallies.
Human Rights Watch has reacted to the June 20 demonstration in Tbilisi, triggered by the presence of Russian MPs in Georgia, and urged the Georgian government to investigate the use of force during the rally which left 240 injured.
Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatović has called on "all sides" of the clashes in Tbilisi to "resolve any controversies through peaceful dialogue" after the confrontation left 240 individuals injured on Thursday night.
14 protesters out of those detained during clashes with police last night have been sentenced to 12 days of administrative detention. They were sentenced for hooliganism and clashes with the police.
32 journalists received injuries during the June 20 demonstration in Tbilisi, many of them were shot by rubber bullet shots, the Georgian Charter of Journalist Ethics said earlier today.
The violent June 20 clash between protesters and security services in Tbilisi and subsequent demonstrations in the capital "largely harmed" security conditions in the country, a report by Georgia's State Security Service has said.