Prepared by Messenger Staff
Occupied Tskhinvali Court Orders Pretrial Detention of Georgian Activist Tamar Mearakishvili
A court controlled by de facto authorities in Russia-occupied Tskhinvali has ordered two months of pretrial detention for Georgian civic activist Tamar Mearakishvili on espionage charges.
According to Sapa media agency, the hearing was held behind closed doors on December 24, with journalists and Mearakishvili's relatives barred from attending. The activist has been charged under Article 276 of Russia's Criminal Code, which carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. She denies the accusations and has announced a hunger strike.
Georgia's State Security Service confirmed the detention, saying it had received information through a hotline from Tskhinvali. "The fact of the illegal detention of Tamar Mearakishvili, a Georgian citizen permanently residing in the occupied territory, has been confirmed," the agency said, adding that "intensive communication is underway regarding this issue."
De facto authorities claim Mearakishvili is suspected of transferring information to foreign media allegedly linked to Georgian security services and accuse those outlets of conducting propaganda "in the interests of Georgia and its Western partners."
Human rights organizations in Tbilisi strongly rejected the allegations. The Social Justice Center said the arrest fits a long pattern of pressure against the activist. "This is a continuation of eight years of persecution and harassment practices against her," the organization stated, adding that local authorities have kept her "in total isolation" and without proper documents for years.
Shortly before her detention, Mearakishvili publicly criticized the de facto administration, writing that she had been "forced to begin a hunger strike" because of "arbitrary actions of the authorities" and violations of her rights.
Mearakishvili has previously faced prosecution in the occupied region. She was detained in 2017 and later charged over documentation issues related to citizenship, though those charges were eventually dropped in 2019.
Rights groups say her latest arrest is linked to her continued criticism of local structures. "Despite constant harassment, Tamar has never stopped speaking out about corruption and rights violations," the Social Justice Center said.
Kobakhidze Approves $10.4 Million U.S. Military Grant
The Georgian Dream government has formally approved the receipt of military assistance from the United States worth more than USD 10.4 million, according to a decree signed by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on December 22.
The decree authorizes Georgia's Ministry of Defense to accept communications equipment and related goods provided by the U.S. government as a grant. The document states that "the authority is granted to the Ministry of Defense of Georgia to receive communications equipment and other types of goods defined by the grants allocated to the Ministry of Defense of Georgia by the Government of the United States of America."
The assistance will be delivered under five separate U.S. grant programs, with a combined value of USD 10,431,459.90. The decree does not specify when the equipment will be delivered or how it will be used operationally.
The decision comes at a time of strained relations between Washington and Tbilisi. In November 2024, the United States suspended its Strategic Partnership with Georgia and later imposed sanctions on several Georgian officials, including Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili.
The grant approval also coincides with tighter government control over Western-funded assistance in Georgia. Over the past year, the ruling party adopted legislation modeled on the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act and amended grant regulations, requiring foreign donors to obtain government approval before funding local organizations, measures that primarily affect civil society and independent media.
