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Saakashvili Says He Was Poisoned in Rustavi Prison During Gharibashvili's Term as Prime Minister
Georgia's third president, Mikheil Saakashvili, says he was poisoned in Rustavi Prison while Irakli Gharibashvili was serving as prime minister, shortly after the war in Ukraine began.
"It was precisely during Garibashvili's 'premiership' that I was poisoned in Rustavi Prison, immediately after the war in Ukraine began. Perhaps they hoped that no one would notice my death amid the noise of the war," Saakashvili wrote on Facebook.
He said he suddenly developed seizures, nausea, a fever of 41°C and severe pain, among other symptoms. A prison doctor first raised the possibility of poisoning, he said, and a doctor at Vivamedi later confirmed it to him privately, though neither spoke publicly at the time. He said a leading American toxicologist later confirmed the poisoning based on lab results from California and Germany.
Saakashvili said the poisoning "would have been impossible without orders from the Russians and the main local mafia boss." He said Novichok was likely the intended agent but that Russia had not had time to supply it, so heavy metals, a more common poisoning method, were used instead.
He drew a comparison to opposition figure Alexei Navalny, who he said was poisoned a second time in a Russian prison some time after his own poisoning, this time fatally. "Putin used to call him the 'Russian Saakashvili'," he wrote.
Prosecutor's Office Launches Probe Into Alleged Assault on Lawyer Siranashvili During Search
Georgia's Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation into allegations that Ministry of Internal Affairs officers used violence against lawyer Ia Siranashvili during a police search at the apartment of Tamaz Elizbarashvili.
The Tbilisi Prosecutor's Office says it is examining possible abuse of official power involving violence, a crime under Georgia's Criminal Code, and will update the public as the case develops.
Siranashvili, who represents Elizbarashvili, says she was removed from the apartment by officers during the search. Her colleague, lawyer Iako Kvantaliani, was livestreaming the operation on Facebook when officers told her to stop filming. She says they then assaulted her.
"They threw me out, locked the door, took my phone, then five policemen started kicking me," Kvantaliani said. "I have never seen anything like this, a lawyer is being kicked, what is happening, people?"
Elizbarashvili was arrested at his home after police searched his car and apartment. The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that the searches were tied to an ongoing investigation into threats and illegal weapons possession.
