Georgia’s State Security Service: explosives brought from Ukraine traced to house in Tbilisi’s Avlabari district

The State Security Service of Georgia on Friday said explosives smuggled into the country from Ukraine had been traced to a single final location - a residential house in Tbilisi’s Avlabari neighbourhood.

The body said two Ukrainian citizens were earlier detained in possession of 2.4 kilograms of the explosive substance hexogen. The material entered Georgia through Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey.

“Following the detention, within a day and a half, multiple investigative and operational measures were carried out. It was established that the explosives were handed over to the driver of a Mercedes truck in Ukraine by members of the so-called ‘SBU’ - Ukraine’s security service - who instructed him to bring the substance into Georgia and deliver it to a specific individual,” the agency said.

One of the detainees reportedly claimed in his testimony that the explosives were ultimately intended for Russia, where they would be used in an operation code-named ‘Spider 2’. However, investigators say that, based on current evidence and operational data, the only identified final location so far is the house in Avlabari.

The body added that it is also examining possible links between the explosives case, the October 4 elections in Georgia, and plans previously announced by radical groups.