Georgia’s interior ministry denies use of any banned substances against demonstrators

Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Aleksandre Darakhvelidze has claimed that the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) had not used any prohibited substances against pro-European demonstrators last year following recent claims by BBC suggesting otherwise.

Darakhvelidze emphasized that a full investigation had been conducted, and no further studies are necessary.

“It has been clearly and unequivocally established that the MIA did not use any banned substances. The substance that was reportedly involved has been identified with specific photographic evidence, and claims that it was a prohibited substance never used since World War I have been proven false. Therefore, no additional investigation is required. As the Prime Minister has noted, if anyone has further questions, external actors can review the case materials,” Darakhvelidze said.