DFWatch staff 
TBILISI, October 8 – The violent unrest that broke out in Tbilisi on October 4 dealt a heavy blow to the reputation of Georgia’s protest movement, according to EU policy analyst Kakha Gogolashvili, but he believes the ruling Georgian Dream party will struggle to brand all forms of opposition as violent or extremist. Speaking on … Read more
TBILISI, October 8 – Georgia’s Interior Ministry announced Wednesday that four more people have been arrested in connection with the violent unrest that erupted in Tbilisi on October 4, bringing the total number of detainees to 22. Deputy Interior Minister Aleksandre Darakhvelidze told reporters that the arrests were made under court orders as part of … Read more
TBILISI, October 8 – Russia has begun mass deportations of foreign truck drivers, including those from Central Asia, in what experts warn could soon affect Georgian haulers crossing the same border. According to the Transport Corridor Research Center (TCRC), Russian authorities are detaining foreign drivers at roadside parking lots and deporting them if they overstay … Read more
TBILISI, October 8 – The former director of Gldani prison in Tbilisi, Davit Gogoberishvili, has been found dead with a gunshot wound, Georgian media reported Wednesday. According to Interpressnews, Gogoberishvili’s body was discovered inside a garage, and early reports suggest he sustained a fatal wound from a firearm. The Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed that … Read more
TBILISI, October 7 – Tbilisi’s City Court has ordered pre-trial detention for five opposition figures accused of orchestrating violence during the October 4 protest in the Georgian capital, which authorities describe as an attempted “coup.” Those detained include opera singer and activist Paata Burchuladze, former chief prosecutor Murtaz Zodelava, opposition politicians Irakli Nadiradze, Paata Manjgaladze, … Read more
TBILISI, October 7 – A pest that first appeared in Abkhazia about eight years ago has now become a permanent local species, Abkhaz authorities say, but its threat to harvests has faded, officials add. Vladimir Geria, head of the Plant Protection Service at Abkhazia’s de facto Ministry of Agriculture, told Apsnipress that the insect known … Read more
TBILISI, October 7 – Famed Georgian opera singer turned activist Paata Burchuladze, one of the main figures detained over the failed October 4 “peaceful revolution,” told a Tbilisi court Tuesday that he was trying to prevent violence, not incite it. Burchuladze, founder of the “Rustaveli Avenue” movement, said that during the unrest near the presidential … Read more
TBILISI, October 6 – Georgia’s Catholic community celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on Monday, with the country’s State Agency for Religious Issues extending official greetings to the Apostolic Administration of the Caucasus and its parishioners. The feast, known locally as Savadis Ghvtismshoblis Dghesastsauli, honors the Virgin Mary under the title of … Read more
TBILISI, October 6 – A new push to link major rail corridors across the South Caucasus and Turkey could soon give the region a powerful boost as a trade bridge between Asia and Europe. Azerbaijan Railways chairman Rovshan Rustamov said that the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars (BTK) railway and the planned Zangezur Corridor will together form a “unified … Read more
TBILISI, October 6 – Khvanchkara is known as one of Stalin’s favorites, and in the remote mountain region of Racha, in northern Georgia, the annual ‘rtveli’ is in full swing, a cultural ritual to harvest the grapes for the famous wine. So far, 120 tons of grapes have been processed in Ambrolauri municipality, according to … Read more