Georgian officials urge release of illegally detained citizens at IPRM meeting

The 120th meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) is currently underway in Ergneti, Gori, near Georgia’s central occupied Tskhinvali region. At the meeting, Georgian officials are pressing for the release of eight Georgian citizens who are illegally detained in the occupied territory.

Irakli Antadze, Deputy Director of the Analytical Department of the State Security Service of Georgia, highlighted the critical issue, stating, “the main focus will be on applying a humanitarian approach to return them to their families.”

One of the detainees, Ramaz Begheluri, was sentenced to eight months in prison on July 20 by the de facto court for so-called border violation. Antadze assured that Begheluri’s health was being closely monitored and emphasized that his sentencing was considered illegal by Georgian authorities.

The IPRM, established after the 2008 Russia-Georgia war, includes representatives from the central government of Georgia, the de facto government of Tskhinvali, Russian occupation forces, the European Union, the OSCE, and the United Nations. During the meeting, Georgian officials also raised concerns about ongoing “borderization” activities, which have seen eight cases recorded since May 16.

Antadze reported that these activities affected the municipalities of Gori, Kareli, and Dusheti, with new installations observed near the village of Kodi and occupied Tsnelisi. He stressed that any instance of illegal borderization was a serious incident, underscoring the steadfast position of the Georgian government and its international partners.