‘‘The main demands that we voiced at the meeting are the immediate return of the illegally detained Georgian and the punishment of those responsible for the killing of Ginturi. We received information from the occupation regime that Levan Dotiashvili is not wounded and is not physically injured,’’ said Irakli Antadze, Deputy Director of the Information and Analytical Service of the State Security Service, after the late evening meeting in Ergneti.
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On November 6, in the village of Kirbali in Gori municipality, Russian soldiers shot and killed a local resident, Tamaz Ginturi, and kidnapped Levan Dotiashvili of the same village and took him to Tskhinvali.
‘‘As far as we know, this incident had no eyewitnesses. The occupying forces opened fire on peaceful civilians. This is murder, no matter whose claimed territory it happened on. The occupied region belongs to Georgia, and it does not matter in which territory the Russian occupation forces commit murder. The only key witness is currently in illegal detention in the occupied territory. I can only speak with verified facts. Work is in progress,’’ said Irakli Antadze.
When asked whether any Georgian police forces were patrolling the area around Kirbali during the murder and where were the law enforcement officers when the shooting took place, the SSSG representative said:
‘‘Police forces were patrolling the area, but as the occupation regime told us, this happened near the church. This is the area where the Russian occupation forces are constantly preventing the local indigenous population from going to the temple and praying. Unfortunately, the church falls within the occupied territory. They said that it happened near the church, but could not determine the exact place. Work on this issue will continue tomorrow and in the following days to determine all the details.’’
Journalists asked the deputy director whether it was true that the Russian military did not allow the Georgian law enforcement officers to help the wounded after the shooting until the ambulance arrived.
‘‘The hotline was activated by the occupying forces, informing us that an emergency medical brigade would arrive on the spot. The ambulance arrived, but he was already dead. Receiving the report and the arrival of the ambulance happened in about 30-40 minutes. The police got there first and then the emergency crew arrived to provide medical attention,’’ said Antadze.
According to him, this is not the first case of Russian occupation forces killing our fellow citizens. ‘‘There is no valid justification for what happened. We are holding talks with our international partners. Now we are awaiting a response regarding the return of the illegally detained citizen to his family.’’
As for whether the person who shot Tamaz Ginturi dead has been identified, according to the SSSG representative, this question was raised at the meeting, but the representatives of the Russian occupation forces did not disclose the data. ‘‘They simply said that an investigation is underway. The only feedback we’re getting is that they are conducting the so-called investigation and the perpetrators will be punished.’’
The so-called Security Service of the Russian-occupied Tskhinvali region issued a statement regarding the murder of Tamaz Ginturi:
‘‘They resisted arrest by the border guards, which threatened the life and health of the border guards. The border trespassers used an axe. They later tried to ram the border guard with a car and then leave for Georgia. To prevent these illegal actions and to prevent the illegal crossing of the state border of the Republic of South Ossetia, the border guards fired a warning shot in the air and after the violators failed to obey the legal requests, they opened fire on the tires of their car. One of the violators was severely wounded and was transferred to the Georgian side for emergency medical care, while the other was arrested.’’
