Two Released After Clashes Outside Kakha Kaladze’s Campaign HQ in Tbilisi

Two men detained in Georgia on charges of assaulting protesters outside the campaign headquarters of the ruling Georgian Dream party in Tbilisi have been released, Orda.kz reports, citing NewsGeorgia.

The office is tied to the party’s mayoral candidate, Kakha Kaladze, who is seeking a third term.

Deputy Interior Minister Aleksandre Darakhvelidze explained the decision at a briefing.

Victims of the attack did not cooperate with investigators. It was impossible to prosecute the two suspects on group violence charges without their testimony. Accordingly, today they were released from custody,
he said.

The Interior Ministry announced on Sept. 10 that police had detained Z.M., born in 1965, and I.B., born in 2003.

They were accused of attacking opposition activists during an anti-government rally two days earlier. More than ten people were injured, including journalists from Publika and Netgazeti, as well as Hungarian freelancer László Mecze.

Separately, police detained 23-year-old student Megi Diasamidze for allegedly damaging a Georgian Dream campaign poster. The ministry said she will be released on bail within hours.

Diasamidze has been charged under Article 187, Part 1 of Georgia’s Criminal Code, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.