Georgian Interior Ministry says more than 400 people detained at rallies in Tbilisi

More than 400 people were detained during the protests in Tbilisi. This was reported on December 8 by the deputy head of the Georgian Interior Ministry Alexander Darakhvelidze.

"More than 30 people were identified and prosecuted criminally. Also administratively, 372 people have been detained and proceedings have been initiated against them, of which 62 have been subjected to administrative detention, more than 100 people have been fined. With regard to the rest, judicial proceedings are actively underway," Imedi TV channel reports his words.

The deputy head of the Interior Ministry also said that more than 150 police officers were injured during the protests. Darakhvelidze pointed out that violence on the part of protesters and police officers is worthy of censure. He said attacks on police officers have been "glorified and romanticized," which is not a good thing.

"Unfortunately, only pictures of those people who were injured during the rally are published. <...> Imagine what it is like for a policeman when your comrade is standing next to you and pyrotechnics or stones fall on him," he pointed out.

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Earlier in the day, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said the country would ban face masks and other clothing elements at rallies. According to local media, presumably, the official ban will apply to goggles, respirators and gas masks, which also cover the face.

Before that, on December 7, it became known that the Georgian police started using gas and rolled out water cannons against protesters on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi. Izvestia correspondent Ilya Anikeyev specified that the crowd of protesters began to disperse at that moment, but the protesters continued to move along Rustaveli Avenue.

On December 2, Georgian security forces were forced to use tear gas to disperse protesters in the center of Tbilisi. On November 30, protesters tried to set fire to the Georgian parliament building and damaged dozens of offices.

Amid these events, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili refused to step down when her term expires at the end of December. In response, Kobakhidze warned that she would be required by law to leave office.

Before that, on November 28, the ruling Georgian Dream party decided to suspend until 2028 discussions with the EU on opening accession talks.