News

The president of Georgia plans to establish direct presidential rule in the Adjarian autonomy from the moment when Aslan Abashidze resigns as head of Adjaria and until a new local government is elected.

"We find it impossible to work when women and children are beaten and we can't show it since every step we take is under control of up to 50 officers of special services. The time has come at last when the television will be given back to the Adjarian people," they said.

Edvard Surmanidze, co-chairman of the opposition movement Our Adjaria, told it to thousands of opposition supporters holding a meeting in the center of Batumi.

Talks between Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania and Adjarian Interior Minister Djemal Gogitidze are expected to take place in the neutral zone in a short time.

For the years of its work in Nagorny Karabakh, The HALO Trust, a British organization, has cleared from mines 524 thousand square meters of land and has neutralized 3,377 mines and 26,396 items of unexploded ordnance.

"We expect Abashidze to resign already today. Otherwise the opposition holding mass meetings may become uncontrollable, and then developments may not be in his [Abashidze's] favor," Georgian state minister Georgy Khaindrava said.

Both the terminal and the bridge were mined as early as May 1, the source at the Georgian National Security Council.

The Union of Russian Committees of Soldier's Mothers gives such data.

The Associated Press reported it on May 4 referring to the Moscow-backed government of the republic.

A column of cars with the opposition activists left Tbilisi for Batumi on the night of May 4-5. They want to join participants in the actions taking place in Adjaria with the demand of Aslan Abashidze's resignation.

The situation in Batumi is heated, buses full of adversaries of the Adjarian leader are on their way from other regions of the autonomy and from Tbilisi to Batumi.

A meeting of the Adjarian opposition is continuing in Batumi. Its participants are demanding the resignation of Adjarian leader Aslan Abashidze. The opponents of the Adjarian leader from all the districts of the autonomous republic participated in the protest actions all throughout the past night.

"We protest against our being Abashidze's official hostages after the explosions of bridges," action participants said.

"Explosions of bridges by a madman are not called a conflict, though this is a very complicated situation for the population," Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zurabishvili said.

"General Netkachev is in Moscow now," Aslan Abashidze said.

One cache was disclosed near the village of Mesker-Yurt in the Shali district. Besides, mortar shells concealed in a cleft and masked with branches were found near the village of Dargo in the Vedeno district.

Akhmed Zakayev, Maskhadov's emissary in Europe, announced it commenting on the information that the separatist leader had been wounded in Chechnya.

They are using wooden truncheons against the demonstrators. Some people have already suffered. The people have been squirted on from a water cannon.

One of the homemade bombs went off in Gudermes, another on the Kavkaz ("Caucasus") federal highway.

"The most likely change of government option is linked with the people's movement," Victor Dallakian, Secretary of the Justice parliamentary faction, told journalists.