State Security Service demands “unconditional release” of illegally arrested Georgian citizens from occupied territory
Marek Szczygieł, the Head of the EUMM in Georgia, called for a “humanitarian approach” to be applied during the Easter celebrations and asked for “special attention” be given to the rights of the local population, including access to religious sites and cemeteries. Photo: The State Security Service of Georgia/Facebook.
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The Georgian State Security Service officials have demanded “unconditional release” of Georgian citizens illegally arrested by the Russian occupation forces, during the latest meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism in the central Georgian village of Ergneti, the state agency said on Tuesday.
The SSS made the demand to the de facto authorities of the Russian-occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region at the 106th meeting of the IPRM, the platform for facilitating talks between Georgian agencies and de facto authorities of the occupied region.
The 106th #IPRM took place today in Ergneti. The co-facilitators asked that during Easter special attention be given to the rights of local populations. Participants agreed to hold a technical meeting on irrigation issues end of April.
— EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia (@EUMMGeorgia) April 12, 2022
More info: https://t.co/4KtyeDUQcO pic.twitter.com/kHLUSavmmn
In their comments, the European Union Monitoring Mission and OSCE representatives commended the commitment of the participants to the IPRM, and stressed the importance of continuing the effective use of a related EUMM-managed hotline, in anticipation of the upcoming Orthodox Easter celebrations that see active movement of civilians between communities living along the occupation line.
Marek Szczygieł, the Head of the EUMM in Georgia, called for a “humanitarian approach” to be applied during the Easter celebrations and asked for “special attention” be given to the rights of the local population, including access to religious sites and cemeteries.
During the meeting, participants discussed the impact of protracted closures of the crossing points at the Administrative Boundary Line on conflict-affected communities. The co-facilitators stressed the Odzisi Crossing Point has been closed to regular cross-ABL traffic for over two and a half years, and reiterated their call for a re-opening of the checkpoint.
The next IPRM meeting is set to be held on June 7.
Russian occupation forces illegally arrested Georgian citizen Giorgi Kujoshvili near the central Georgia’s occupied village of Adzvistavi on Tuesday, the Georgian State Security Service (SSS) confirmed earlier today.
The release of Georgian citizen Gela Gochoshvili who was detained by the Russian occupation forces several months ago, and the illegal ‘borderisation’ process remained at the top of agenda of the 103th Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) which was held in Ergneti earlier today.
Activities of foreign special services designed to interfere in the public and political life of Georgia were a challenge for the country in 2021, an annual report of the State Security Service to the Georgian Parliament said.
The forces carrying out occupation of central Georgia’s Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region were observed in 130 cases of illegal ‘borderisation’ on the administrative boundary throughout 2021, while nine such incidents noted along the boundary separating the occupied northwestern Abkhazia from the Georgian territory, the annual report of the Georgian State Security Service said.
Release of Georgian citizens illegally detained by Russian occupation forces, and the illegal ‘borderisation’ process along the occupation line in Georgia were in focus of the 107th Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism meeting on Tuesday, the Georgian State Security Service said.
The illegal “borderisation” process carried out by occupation forces along the administrative boundary line between Georgia’s occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region and the rest of the country, illegal detentions of Georgian citizens and their release will be discussed at the 108th meeting of the region’s de facto authorities and Georgian officials on Friday.