DFWatch staff 
TBILISI, August 13 – Levan Makhashvili, head of parliament’s EU Integration Committee, says a strong voter turnout for the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) in the October 4 local elections would send a clear signal to the ‘Brussels bureaucracy’ against what he calls a pressure campaign on Georgia. The EU has voiced concerns over recent Georgian … Read more
TBILISI, August 13 – Georgia’s far right Alt Info movement, running under the name Conservatives for Georgia, has nominated Zurab Makharadze to challenge incumbent mayor Kakha Kaladze in Tbilisi. The Central Election Commission assigned the party ballot slot No. 3, and Alt Info says it will also compete for city council seats in the capital … Read more
TBILISI, August 13 – In Georgia, the opposition United National Movement (UNM), currently boycotting parliament, is openly discussing a “peaceful revolution” to change power on October 4. Party leader Levan Khabeishvili even launched a Facebook poll asking supporters if they would attend a planned rally. Around 4,700 people responded, with 92% saying yes. UNM chair … Read more
TBILISI, August 12 – Police in Tbilisi say they have uncovered a contract killing plot in the heart of the capital, which they believe is tied to infighting in the city’s business circles. Several suspects have been arrested, while others face charges in absentia. According to investigators, brothers Giorgi and Davit Mikadze allegedly had a … Read more
TBILISI, August 12 – A late-night operation to collect stray dogs under Georgia’s new animal control program has triggered protests from local activists, who claim the animals were already cared for. Animal rights activists claim the stray dogs had already been vaccinated, sterilized, and were under community care, warning that repeated vaccination could be harmful. … Read more
TBILISI, August 12 – A Georgian court has sentenced opposition activist Anatoli Gigauri, a member of the United National Movement (UNM), to two years in prison for resisting police during a protest last November. Prosecutors had initially charged him with assaulting a police officer, which carried a sentence of four to seven years. The judge … Read more
TBILISI, August 12 – Georgia’s Interior Ministry says it has deported 34 foreign nationals in recent days as part of a coordinated effort to tackle illegal migration. Those expelled were citizens of India, Russia, Nigeria, Iran, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Kenya, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan. Under Georgian law, they have also been banned from re-entering the … Read more
TBILISI, August 12 – Georgia’s upcoming local elections, scheduled for October 4, are shaping up to be a contest between the ruling Georgian Dream party and a fragmented opposition. Seventeen parties are registered to compete, though analysts are divided on whether the vote will be truly competitive, according to Rezonansi. Supporters of the government point … Read more
TBILISI, August 12 – A group of 19 journalists and camera operators who were injured during street protests in March 2023 have sued Georgia at the European Court of Human Rights. The demonstrations took place after parliament passed the first reading of the controversial foreign influence law, and saw police use force to disperse crowds. … Read more
TBILISI, August 11 – The United National Movement (UNM) will ignore a decision by authorities to change the opposition party’s ballot number. UNM lost its official ballot number – in use for decades – for the upcoming October 4 local elections, after failing to register with the Central Election Commission (CEC). UNM figure Irakli Pavlenishvili … Read more