US remains ‘especially concerned’ at ongoing detention of Georgian doctor by occupation forces
The US Mission to OSCE has made a station following the recent Geneva International Discussions on Georgian conflict issues. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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The United States remains ‘especially concerned’ by the ongoing detention of Doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili [by Russian controlled occupation forces], and echoes ‘calls from across the international community’ for his immediate release, the US Mission to the OSCE reports.
The US says that the restrictions placed on the occupation lines [by Russian controlled de facto Tskhinvali government] continue to worsen the humanitarian conditions in the Georgian region of Tskhinvali.
The United States calls for the immediate end to borderization, arbitrary detentions, and undue restrictions on movement, and urges the relevant authorities to allow unimpeded access for humanitarian organizations to the Georgian territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.”
The US says that the Gali and Ergneti Incident Prevention and Response Mechanisms [local mechanisms to address humanitarian issues mostly] are crucial for maintaining dialogue on a range of issues and to ensuring the availability of communication channels for crisis resolution.
We call on participants to ensure the IPRM’s regular function – without preconditions.”
The United States called again for a ‘full and accurate accounting’ of the deaths of Archil Tatunashvili, Giga Otkhozoria, and Davit Basharuli, and expressed ‘full support’ for continuing investigations with regard to missing persons.
The United States welcomed the exchange of information between the Georgian and Russian delegations on the death of Irakli Kvaratskhelia during the [recent] Geneva talks.
The family of well-known Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili, who was abducted by Russian-controlled occupation forces on November 9, says that the Georgian government has created a coordination council composed of top state officials to take all measures for the release of the doctor from occupied Tskhinvali prison.
Family and friends of Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili are holding a peaceful demonstration near the occupation line a month after he was sent to two-month pretrial detention “for deliberately crossing the border” of the occupied Tskhinvali region.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has again called on the international community to “strengthen their efforts” to ensure “the immediate release” of Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili from Tskhinvali custody.
The court in Georgia’s Russian-controlled Tskhinvali region has sentenced a well-known Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili to one year and nine-months to prison for “deliberately crossing the border,” despite a large-scale local and international campaign for the release of the abducted doctor. The information has been released by head of Georgia’s Bar Association David Asatiani.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani has condemned the decision of Russian controlled de facto Tskhinvali to sentence well-known Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili to one year and nine months in prison and stated that the illegal detention was a “deliberate provocation.”
A number of foreign officials have denounced the Tskhinvali decision to sentence Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindahsvili to one year and nine-months to prison for “deliberately crossing the border” between occupied Tskhinvali and the rest of Georgia in early November.
The family of well -known Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili, who was abducted by Russian-controlled occupation forces on November 9 and was illegally sentenced to one year and nine months to prison “for deliberately crossing the border” last week, has addressed the diplomatic corps in Georgia ‘to spare no efforts’ in achieving the release of the doctor.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani and UN Under Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo have spoken about the abduction of well-known Georgian doctor Vazha Gaprindashvili and his illegal sentencing to prison by the Russian-controlled de facto Tskhinvali in a phone conversation, the Georgian Foreign Ministry reported earlier today.