TBILISI, DFWatch–The Supreme Court in Abkhazia on Friday rejected a lawsuit filed by presidential candidate Alhaz Kvitsinia, seeking to annul the results of the runoff elections and call a new election. Although Kvitsinia’s team will appeal the ruling, it is already clear that Kremlin-backed Raul Khajimba, a former KGB operative, has won the election. In … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–The opposition in Abkhazia is planning a rally in Sokhumi on Tuesday, which will be held in parallel with a court hearing in a lawsuit filed by the opposition candidate Alkhaz Kvitsinia to demand the results of the de facto presidential runoff annulled. Kvitsinia and his supporters argue that the existing “constitution” requires a … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Tensions are growing in Abkhazia after the runoff in the breakaway republic’s presidential elections, as the opposition refuses to accept the lead by incumbent de facto president Raul Khajimba. There is a high likelihood that the result will ultimately be declared invalid, a person close to Sokhumi officials told DFWatch. Incumbent de facto president … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–There will be a runoff election for de facto president of breakaway Abkhazia on September 8, since none of the candidates received over 50% of votes in the first round on Sunday. Incumbent de facto president Raul Khajimba is in the lead, trailed by Oleg Arshba and Alhaz Kvitsinia, according to preliminary results. Although … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Two politicians from the German far-right AfD were among the foreign observers who were present during Sunday’s election for de facto president of Abkhazia. The election was not recognized by Georgia. Among the dozens of international observers to the elections were Stefan Keuter, member of the German Bundestag representing the far-right AfD, Gunnar Norbert … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–The Georgian breakaway region Abkhazia is holding elections for de facto president on Sunday. Ten candidates are vying for the seat, but none of them stand much of a chance against the incumbent Raul Khajimba, a former KGB operative and close ally of the Kremlin. Aslan Bzhania, a former candidate proposed by a group … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–One of the opposition parties in Abkhazia has officially nominated its chairman Alhaz Kvitsinia as a candidate for president of the breakaway republic. A local party official said this in a speech at a party congress of the Amtsakhar party, one of the largest opposition parties in the disputed region. Aslan Bzhania, the joint … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–Abkhazia’s breakaway authorities claim opposition leader Aslan Bzhania’s sudden illness is due to ordinary food intoxication, not deliberate poisoning. Sokhumi thus rejects conclusions by a laboratory in Munich, which found earlier that samples from the leading opposition contender contained high levels of lead and cadmium. De facto deputy prosecutor general, Epshsou Kakulia, told the … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–The opposition in breakaway Abkhazia ended their rally in front of parliament building in Sokhumi on Tuesday, after reaching a compromise with de facto authorities. The sides have agreed to postpone the presidential elections to August 26. The de facto parliament earlier decided to hold elections in July, while the opposition had demanded to … Read more
TBILISI, DFWatch–The opposition in Abkhazia rallied in front of the parliament building in Sokhumi Tuesday for the second day, vowing not to stop it until parliament postpones the presidential elections until fall due to the suspected poisoning of their leader. Overnight, opposition activists temporarily blocked the central highway at two locations north and south of … Read more