Saakashvili may be allowed to attend trials concerning him

Former president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili may be allowed to attend trial hearings in the cases concerning him, after calling off his 50-day hunger strike, Justice Minister Rati Bregadze said.  

 

He stated that safety issues and Saakashvili’s health were the key reasons the former president was not permitted to attend the hearings. 

 

“If the factors are removed, we will take him to court,” Bregadze said. 

 

Saakashvili, who is now a citizen of Ukraine and holding an official post there, was arrested in Tbilisi on October 1 after eight years in political exile. 

 

He says he returned to remove the Georgian Dream government from power.  

 

Saakashvili was convicted in Georgia in absentia back in 2018 for abuse of power and was sentenced to six years in prison.  

 

He has also been charged with five other offences, including illegal seizure of property, illegal rally dispersal, embezzlement and others.