Seven Georgian citizens remain in illegal custody in Russian-occupied Tskhinvali

A total of seven Georgian citizens remain illegally imprisoned by the Russian occupation forces as of December 24, Georgian State Security Service (SSS) representative Giorgi Sabedashvili reported.

Sabedashvili stated that since the Russia-Georgia 2008 war ‘people are detained illegally every year and unfortunately, at no point has the government been able to stop this.’

• Occupation forces illegally arrest four Georgian citizens in Gori municipality

He also noted that the SSS along with the Interior Ministry remains in ‘constant contact’ with the families of Georgian citizens who remain in custody in the occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region.

The SSS states that the hotline of the European Union monitoring mission (EUMM) in Georgia has been activated and co-chairs of the Geneva International Discussions involved in the process.

• Georgian citizens illegally arrested by occupation forces denied bail

More is being done, but these are the main levers and tools with the help of which we have released several thousand people from illegal detention,” said Sabedashvili. 

Four Georgian citizens near the village of Adzvi in Gori municipality were illegally arrested yesterday, while three more people were arrested on December 10-12.

The illegal arrest of Georgian citizens is a common issue near the occupation line. Usually, those arrested are released once their families pay a fine.

• Occupation forces illegally arrest two Georgian citizens

Russia declared the independence of Georgia’s occupied Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region on August 26, 2008, following the Russia-Georgia war.

However, only four other countries – Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria – share Russia’s position regarding the occupied Georgian territories’ status, while the whole international community states that the regions are occupied by Russia.