19:31, 6 January 2025

Georgian authorities start deporting foreign protesters

A protest action in Tbilisi. December 6, 2024. Photo by Aziz Karimov for the "Caucasian Knot"

According to court rulings, 25 foreign citizens who took part in protests last November and December will be deported from Georgia, the country's Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has informed.

Last December, Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin's press secretary, blamed the Russian citizens detained at protest venues in Tbilisi as offenders.

Since November 28, 2024, Georgia faces protests against the suspension of negotiations on Georgia's membership in the European Union. Law enforcers have been violently dispersing protesters by using tear gas and water cannons. By December 2, 2024, the number of detainees had reached 224. They are accused of petty hooliganism and resisting the police.

According to the Georgia's MIA, 91 citizens of different countries were ordered to leave Georgia in the last two months of 2024.

"Among the deportees ... are the foreign citizens who took part in protests held in Tbilisi in November-December and were subjected to administrative penalties by court rulings – a total of 25 people," the "Tbilisi Life" Telegram channel quotes the MIA as stating.

Local media reported that at least 15 of the detained foreigners are Russian citizens, the "NewsGeorgia" Telegram channel has written.

The detained Russian citizens will likely be deported from the country, the author of the "BERG...man Tbilisi" blog on the "Caucasian Knot" had suggested earlier.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 4, 2025 at 12:50 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Source: Caucasian Knot