Georgian authorities deport Temur Katamadze to Turkey

The Georgian authorities have expelled Temur Katamadze (Gafar Yilmaz), who has become a symbol of the anti-government protests in Batumi, to Turkey.

57-year-old Temur Katamadze is well-known as the “Batumi Standard-Bearer” because he was always holding the Georgian flag in his hands during the protest actions in Batumi and was leading pro-European rallies.

On the evening of June 11, Temur Katamadze was taken out of the country without being allowed to be visited by human rights defenders and relatives, the “Pirveli” TV Channel reported.

“At this stage, we do not know on what grounds he has been expelled, since the period for voluntary departure from the country expired yesterday evening. Recently, Temur Katamadze complained about psychological pressure on him from officials of the migration department. We will, of course, monitor the progress of the Temur’s case in the Republic of Turkey,” emphasized an advocate of Temur Katamadze.

According to the advocate’s information, a criminal case has been instituted against Temur Katamadze in Turkey under Part 2 of Article 314 of the Turkish Criminal Code, which concerns participation in an armed organization and provides for imprisonment for a term of five to ten years.

Nino Kakuliya, a Temur Katamadze’s wife, reports that her husband has been transferred to the city of Ordu, where a criminal case has been instituted against him, the “InterPressNews” news agency reports.

This was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 11, 2025 at 04:43 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.