Georgien

Tens of thousands rallied on Monday in Georgia seeking the release of jailed opposition leader and former president Mikheil Saakashvili, who has been on hunger strike for several weeks, as Ukraine slammed his transfer to a prison hospital.

Candidates of the Georgian Dream party won 19 of the 20 municipal elections in runoff votes on Saturday, including the mayoral offices in the country's five largest cities: Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Rustavi, Batumi and Poti. … An election observer mission of the OSCE said the "voting and counting were overall assessed positively despite some procedural issues, particularly during counting."

Dozens of European lawmakers and other current and former politicians -- including former presidents of Latvia and Ukraine -- have called for the release of jailed Georgian ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili, whose detention earlier this month deepened a protracted political crisis in the South Caucasus country.

Thousands of people have gathered in the center of the Georgian capital demanding the release of jailed former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, whose detention earlier this month deepened a protracted political crisis in the South Caucasus country.

Georgia's ruling party on Sunday was set to win nationwide municipal elections that were overshadowed by the arrest of the country's former president and claims from by election obersvers of unfair voting practices. Ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili returned from exile in Ukraine to the Caucasus country on Friday to support the opposition.

Georgia’s local elections were competitive and technically well administered, but marred by widespread allegations of electoral violations, vote-buying, and an unlevel playing field, as well as intimidation and pressure, international observers said in a statement today.

The leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Irakli Kobakhidze, annulled an EU-brokered deal with opposition parties on July 28 after only three months, blaming the opposition for the agreement’s failure.

Georgia’s ruling party has annulled an EU-brokered deal with the opposition after three months, putting the Caucasus nation on a path to deeper political crisis.

OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid concluded her visit to Georgia yesterday, following two days of intensive discussions and field visits. … The focus of the talks were on concrete areas of co-operation, such as tackling transnational threats and anti-trafficking, and the OSCE’s continued support to Georgia as part of a comprehensive approach to security. 

Georgia's main opposition leader, Nika Melia, has said that his United National Movement (ENM) will enter parliament after a nearly seven-month boycott. … In a joint statement, the EU and U.S. missions to Georgia said the ENM's return to parliament was "another positive step" toward strengthening democracy in Georgia.