22:40, 4 November 2020

Georgian Penitentiary Service: participants in beating of Giorgi Rurua punished

Giorgi Rurua. Photo: http://ru.saqinform.ge/news/42942/georgij-rurua-zaderZan-po-obvineniU-v-nezakonnom-noSenii-oruZiA.html

Five prisoners who participated in an attack on Giorgi Rurua, a co-owner of the "Mtavari Arkhi" TV Channel, have been transferred to another penitentiary institution with a tightening of the penal colony regime. The investigation into a criminal case on beating is underway, the Georgian Special Penitentiary Service reports.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 2, a conflict took place between Giorgi Rurua and five prisoners in the Gldani prison. Giorgi Rurua, whom the opposition considers as a political prisoner, was beaten.

On July 30, a Tbilisi court found Giorgi Rurua, a shareholder of the opposition Georgian "Mtavari Arkhi" TV Channel, guilty of illegal firearms trafficking and sentenced him to four years of imprisonment.

On her Facebook page, MEP Anna Fotyga, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, wrote that MEPs should visit Giorgi Rurua and assess the situation.

Let us remind you that the opposition insisted on the release of Giorgi Rurua together with Giorgi Ugulava, Secretary General of the "European Georgia" Party, and Irakli Okruashvili, a founder of the "Winning Georgia" Party. US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed their concern over the Giorgi Rurua's sentence.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 4, 2020 at 03:06 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.