Friday morning headlines from #Georgia, 7 August 📍Eighteen years have passed since the August 2008 Russia–Georgia war over South Ossetia. On the Georgian side, 412 soldiers and civilians were killed, while 365 people died on the Ossetian side. Around 20,000 ethnic Georgians were forced to flee their homes. Georgia also lost control of another 125 villages in the Tskhinvali region (South Ossetia). After the active phase of the war ended, Russia recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states. A timeline of the events, with photos and videos, is available here jam-news.net/august-2008-chr… 📍Representatives of Georgia’s civil society issued a joint statement marking the 18th anniversary of the August war. They said Georgia’s defense capabilities are closely linked to the support of its international partners, and that Russia’s attempts to shift responsibility for its aggression onto Georgia harm the country’s national interests. 📍One year has passed since the Batumi City Court sentenced Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of the popular media outlets Batumelebi and Netgazeti, to two years in prison for slapping a police officer who had insulted her. International organizations and diplomatic missions marked the anniversary. The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, the British Embassy, and the International Press Institute called for her immediate release. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) said the European Court of Human Rights has registered a fourth complaint related to Amaghlobeli’s case. She was arrested in January 2025. Human rights groups say the case is politically motivated. 📍A court found opposition leader Nika Melia guilty of contempt of court and sentenced him to one year and six months in prison. Melia is already serving a sentence on other charges. However, the new sentence replaces the previous one, meaning his expected release date remains unchanged. He is due to be released in December 2026. 📍New charges have been filed in the case of the murder of young Tbilisi teacher Giga Avaliani. Prosecutors charged Nia Imnadze, the girlfriend of the main suspect, with incitement to intentionally inflict grievous bodily harm. Anastasia Beruashvili has also been charged with failing to report an especially serious crime. According to investigators, the suspects monitored Avaliani for several days before the attack and studied the route he usually took. The 28-year-old teacher died from injuries after a brutal beating in October 2025. More about the Giga Avaliani case here jam-news.net/giga-avaliani-c… 📍Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze made another statement about what he called Russophobia and a campaign against Russian tourists, which he claims is being carried out by certain groups in Georgia. According to him, false information is being deliberately spread on social media to create the impression that Georgia is unsafe for Russian tourists and to damage the country’s economy. Georgia’s State Security Service has opened an investigation under the article on sabotage. According to the agency, the campaign, allegedly coordinated from abroad and supported by certain individuals and organizations inside Georgia, used fake bot accounts to spread claims that Georgia poses a danger to Russian tourists, including false reports about the deliberate poisoning of their food. 📍According to Azerbaijani media, Baku has sent a diplomatic note to Georgia’s Foreign Ministry over what it says are unjustified delays faced by Azerbaijani truck drivers at Georgian border crossings, with some vehicles reportedly held for several weeks. In response, Georgia’s Foreign Ministry said the relevant agencies had begun an urgent review of the issue and were working on a solution. Azerbaijan’s embassy in Tbilisi also said the matter is being addressed jointly with the relevant Georgian authorities. 📍In Telavi, the main city of Georgia’s Kakheti region, which was recently hit by severe flooding and mudslides, all buildings located within a 10-meter zone around the Telavi Gorge will be demolished, local authorities said. The decision is based on an expert assessment. Residents affected by the measure will be offered alternative housing or financial compensation. 🔴 Listen to our podcast: every morning, the latest news from Georgia, #Azerbaijan, and #Armenia here tinyurl.com/5n8dm722 📸 Georgian internally displaced people leave the Tskhinvali region (South Ossetia) during the August 2008 war. Photo: REUTERS

France, Germany, Italy and UK reaffirm support for Georgia on 18th anniversary of 2008 war France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom have reaffirmed their support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity on the 18th anniversary of the 2008 Russia-Georgia war, condemning Russia’s continued military presence in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. In a joint statement, the four countries said Russia’s military presence in the two regions violates international law and Moscow’s commitments under the six-point ceasefire agreement brokered by the EU in August 2008. They also warned that the continued militarisation of the territories “poses a serious threat to Georgia’s security, as well as to regional and European stability”. The statement welcomed Nauru’s recent decision to withdraw its recognition of the breakaway regions and called on other countries that have established diplomatic relations with Abkhazia and South Ossetia to follow suit. Russia recognised the two regions as independent states on 26 August 2008, shortly after the five-day war ended. The move was condemned internationally and followed by the establishment of permanent Russian military bases in both territories. The 2008 war left more than 400 Georgian servicemen and civilians dead and displaced about 30,000 people, according to official Georgian figures. Russia now maintains control over roughly 20% of Georgia’s internationally recognised territory. The conflict began on 7 August 2008, when fighting escalated between Georgian forces and South Ossetian forces, followed by large-scale Russian military intervention. A ceasefire brokered by then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy was agreed on 12 August. The EU continues to monitor the situation through its unarmed European Union Monitoring Mission, established in September 2008. Its monitors patrol around the administrative boundary lines with Abkhazia and South Ossetia but have been denied access to the territories themselves. The international position on the territories remains overwhelmingly in favour of Georgia’s territorial integrity. In April 2026, the EU again condemned Russia’s military presence, recognition of the two regions and continued “borderisation”, and called on Moscow to fulfil its obligations under the 2008 ceasefire agreement. Nauru’s decision leaves Russia, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Syria as the countries that recognise Abkhazia and South Ossetia, according to the information provided in the statement. The anniversary comes as the unresolved conflict remains a central security issue for Georgia, while Russia’s continued military presence in the two territories has become part of the wider European security debate following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The EU has repeatedly drawn a direct link between the conflicts, stressing that the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity violated in Georgia are also at stake in Ukraine. 📷A barbed-wire fence separating Georgian territory controlled by Tbilisi and Russian-guarded, breakaway South Ossetia (Photo: gov.ge)