11:42, 22 November 2020

Resident of Georgia detained on South-Ossetian border

A Georgian citizen has been detained near the demarcation line with South Ossetia, the Georgian State Security Service (SSS) has informed, treating the actions of South-Ossetian security services as illegal.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in 2015, a simplified border crossing point was opened between the Georgian village of Zardiantkari and the Ossetian village of Khelchua. It could be used by the 12 people, whose land plots remained on the other side of the border from their houses. They were allowed to cross the border only four days a week. On February 27, 2020, South Ossetia completely closed the border with Georgia due to coronavirus.

According to the Georgian SSS, on November 20, a Georgian citizen was detained in the territory adjacent to the village of Zardiantkari, Gori municipality.

Residents of the Georgian villages bordering on South Ossetia are often detained and fined for border violations; Georgian authorities treat such cases as kidnappings. In July, the human rights organization Amnesty International published a report on human rights violations resulting from "borderisation" in Georgia. Restrictions on crossing the demarcation line with Abkhazia and South Ossetia violate the rights of residents of border villages who cannot manage their households and are under risk of being detained.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 21, 2020 at 10:04 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.