Court denies bail for 3 in June 20 rally case

Tbilisi City Court denied bail for Moris Machalikashvili, in addition to Ilia Memanishvili and Gogi Kurdovanidze and has left them in pretrial detention for possible incitement to violence during the June 20 rally in Tbilisi. 

Machalikashvili’s defence lawyer demanded he be granted bail at 5,000 GEL. Other two demanded bail be set for their clients at - 3,000 GEL. 

• Charge of attempted coup added to investigation into June 20 rally in Tbilisi

Machalikashvili is a close relative of Malkhaz Machalikashvili, the local of Georgia’s Muslim-populated Pankisi Gorge whose son received a deadly injury during the anti-terrorist raid back in 2017. 

19 protestors and 2 police officers have been charged over the June 20-21 protest rally in central Tbilisi, including opposition United National Movement MP Nika Melia and former Defence Minister Irakli Okruashvili.

Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge

Tbilisi protests, which were sparked by the presence of Russian MPs in the Georgian parliament in late June, turned into a violent clash between protesters and police in front of the parliament of Georgia.

The Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into police actions during the rally dispersal. 

• Man detained for incitement to violence at June 20 rally in Tbilisi released on bail

Then Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia said in his televised interviews that the rally became “violent” starting at 10 p.m. following “a systematic and organised” attack on the parliament building on June 20.

Gakharia also said that he gave an order that the rally was dispersed after a part of the demonstrators decided to storm the parliament building.