Activists in Tbilisi protest after Kobakhidze's remarks about the August war

Pro-European protesters in Tbilisi blocked Rustaveli Avenue near the parliament building for the 254th day in a row. Before that, they had held a protest in front of the government building because of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's words, who said that Georgia started the war in 2008.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" reported, on August 7, the 253rd day of protests, pro-European protesters in Tbilisi held a mass march in memory of the victims of the August 2008 war. The Georgian opposition considers August 7 to be the start date of the war, citing international investigations, while the ruling party insists on August 8.

Activists in Tbilisi have again blocked Rustaveli Avenue on the 254th day of continuous protests. Films about the August war are being shown in front of the parliament building, and a documentary installation with photographs of the victims of the military actions has been organized there, entitled “If it weren’t for Putin, I would be alive” - this is the inscription placed under the images of all those killed in August 2008, Publika reports.

Also this evening, before the start of the traditional action near the parliament, protesters gathered near the government building to condemn the statement of the Prime Minister of the “Georgian Dream” Irakli Kobakhidze about the start of the war. The protesters called Kobakhidze’s words “treacherous”, pointing out that he accused Georgia of unleashing the war in August 2008, NEWS.On.ge notes.

Several dozen people participated in the action under the slogan “Russia started the war”, with flags and posters: “Remember August 7”, “Russia is an occupier”, “Glory to the heroes”. Police cordons were set up in front of the government chancellery building. Later, the activists moved to Rustaveli Avenue with their unwavering demands for the release of the arrested protesters and the calling of new parliamentary elections, writes “Novosti Gruzia”.

Kobakhidze today stated that the war in 2008 did not begin as a defensive operation of Georgia against Russia, but as an escalation of the conflict after the “unprovoked attack on Tskhinvali”, “of the then regime”, referring to the decree of President Mikheil Saakashvili on the introduction of martial law.

In 2018, the same Irakli Kobakhidze, being the speaker of the Georgian parliament, stated that “the initiator of the war, the aggressor was the Russian Federation”, notes Tbilisi_life. The Netgazeti publication has prepared a video with these two statements by Kobakhidze: in the old one, he blames the Russian Federation for starting the war, and in the new one he states that “the Saakashvili regime started the war.”

The Russian military operation “to force peace,” which went down in history as the “Five-Day War,” was carried out in August 2008 on the territory of Georgia, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia. After the Five-Day War, Russia and some other countries recognized the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Georgia has since considered these territories occupied by Russia and has terminated diplomatic relations with Russia, according to a "Caucasian Knot" report on the Five-Day War of 2008.

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