During the rally near the parliament against the Russian law, members of the special forces squad beat journalists from the online publications Publica, Tabula, and Aprili - Aleksandre Keshelashvili, Giorgi Badridze, and Giorgi Baskhajauri.
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Aleksandre Keshelashvili stated that he was a journalist, yet he still got beaten.
"When they came out and started making arrests, I followed them, taking pictures as usual. When I looked back, I was followed by masked individuals who intercepted me from working, covered my phone, and then someone else came and hit me, taking the phone away. I said that I am a journalist. At first, they didn't understand, but then some people intervened and told them to give it back. When I first approached them, I was trying to explain that I am a journalist, but despite that, he came and hit me,' the journalist told TV Pirveli.
Levan Sutidze, the editor of Tabula, stated that members of the special forces beat journalist Giorgi Badridze on Zhvania Street and took away his mobile phone while he was filming the rally.
"Despite my request to leave, Giorgi continued to work with the office cell phone, which they also tried to take and return. This is the last footage we captured. In defending the Russian pig regime, special forces behave like savages," wrote the editor of Tabula on the social network Facebook.
Aprili Media also reports on the violence against the journalist. According to the publication, Giorgi Baskhajauri, who covers the current processes at the parliament, was physically assaulted by the robocops and was called a pi***** with a homophobic slur.
"They beat me, called me a pi*****t, shouted at me to get the f***k out of here. I ran away, and several robocops were beating me from above. When I was down and they were hitting me, I told them that I am a journalist. They called me a pi*****t, told me that I would learn to be wiser, and then they let me go," Aprili quotes the journalist's comment.
Giorgi Baskhajauri also states that the special forces initiated violence when there was no tension or confrontation, and there were few people left in the area.
At approximately 01:00, peaceful demonstrators gathered against the Russian law were suddenly and without warning attacked. Members of the special forces chased the citizens and physically assaulted them in the streets and alleys around the Parliament. Citizens claim that the special forces also verbally abused them.
