Georgia releases father and son Kelekhsaev who come from South Ossetia

Two out of ten residents of South Ossetia detained by Georgian police this October have been set free. They are father and son Kelekhsaev. Sofia Khorguani, Georgian deputy Ombudsman, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Ms Khorguani said: "On November 12 in the morning, when meeting Ombudsman Sozar Subari, Thomas Hammarberg, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, gave us a list of 10 detained persons, who are kept in Tbilisi SIZO. This fact was also confirmed by Givi Targamadze, chairman of the parliamentary committee for defence and security."

"On that very day employees of our office visited Murad Kusraev, Eric Margiev, Pavel Tekhoev, Lavrentiy Kaziev, Shota Sanakoev, Akhsai Bakoev, Goneri Torshelidze and Ibragim Laliev, who are kept in Prison No. 8 in Gldani (Tbilisi suburb). By that time, Avtandil Kelekhsaev and his under-aged son Alan had been released," she added.

According to Ms Khorguani, all these persons were detained on October 8, 15 and 23 by Georgian police in the villages of Nikozi, Ditsi, Tirdnisi and Orchosani. The deputy Ombudsman learnt for the first time about the detention of the above persons from Russian human rights activist Varvara Pakhomenko, when she received her letter in the evening on November 11.