Russian Forces Prevented from Detaining Georgian Citizen Near Tskhinvali Dividing Line

The State Security Service of Georgia told Civil.ge that on March 7 the Georgian police prevented the Russian occupation forces from detaining a Georgian citizen near village Khurvaleti, located adjacent to Tskhinvali/South Ossetia occupation line.

The SSG, however, did not confirm media reports about the detention of two Russian “border guards” by the Georgian law enforcement officers.

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported based on an unidentified source that Georgian police arrested two Russian occupation regime representatives as they attempted the arbitrary detention of a Georgian farmer some 500 meters deep into Tbilisi-controlled territory.

The incident comes some two weeks ahead of the 52nd round of the Geneva International Discussions, the multilateral forum to address security and humanitarian consequences of the Russo-Georgian War of August 2008, planned for March 23-24.

Khurvaleti, a mixed Georgian-Ossetian village in Gori Municipality, touches the Russian-controlled area on three sides. The village was particularly affected in the borderization process; according to the Public Defender’s office, approximately 36 hectares of agricultural land and pastures, as well as the village cemetery and several households, appeared in the Russian-held territory in the aftermath of the 2008 war.

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