Russian soldiers detain shepherd in conflict zone between Georgia and South Ossetia

A shepherd from the Georgian village of Adzvi disappeared not far from the dividing line between the Gori District of Georgia and South Ossetia. According to the Georgian side, the man has been detained by Russian border guards.

The Georgian media reported the disappearance of the shepherd on May 18. Journalists suggested that the man was kidnapped.

The man is in the hands of Russian border guards, who are on duty along the dividing line between South Ossetia and the Gori District of Georgia. This was declared by Shalva Enukidze, the head of the Information and Analytical Department of the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA).

Grisha Balamtsarashvili, a 67-year-old local resident, grazed cattle on the territory controlled by the Georgian side, when he was kidnapped by armed men, the "Georgia-Online" reports.

According to Shalva Enukidze, the situation in the region is calm and the Tskhinvali authorities are likely to release Grisha Balamtsarashvili soon.

Earlier, the "Caucasian Knot" has reported about the detention of other Georgian citizens in the border area. So, on December 20, 2014, Vasily Khidasheli, a 19-year-old resident of the village of Tsitelubani of the Gori District of Georgia was detained near the border with South Ossetia on suspicion of illegal crossing of the border. Later, he was released.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.