Prepared by Messenger Staff
Bera Ivanishvili Sues TV Pirveli and Formula, Seeks Retraction and Defamation Ruling
Bera Ivanishvili, son of Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, has filed a lawsuit at the Tbilisi City Court against TV Pirveli and Formula, his lawyer Davit Asatiani said. Ivanishvili is seeking a formal retraction of statements broadcast by both channels and a court ruling declaring them defamatory.
Asatiani said the suit does not cover the channels' full reports, which he called extensive, but several specific allegations in them. These include accusations of criminal activity and alleged links to criminal disputes. He said they were broadcast "without any verification, journalistic diligence or similar due process" and have "no connection whatsoever to reality."
Asatiani said the recent campaign against Ivanishvili has been "coordinated and synchronized" across TV channels, politicians and public figures. He said Ivanishvili is a musician, composer and producer with no connection to politics. "Every person has the right, first and foremost, to the protection of their honour, dignity and reputation," he said, adding that civil proceedings are "the only proper course of action" and that those who spread the statements, knowingly or not, should be held accountable under civil law.
Occupation Regime Official Said Ukrainian Drones Repeatedly Entered Airspace Near Psou River
Rustam Latipov, head of the so-called Border Department of the occupation regime's State Security Service in Georgia's occupied Abkhazia region, said Ukrainian Armed Forces drones have repeatedly entered the airspace over the region. He told Russian media the incidents took place along the Psou River, the line separating occupied Abkhazia from Russia.
According to Latipov, operations at the Psou crossing point are temporarily suspended during drone attacks, and the occupation regime's border services take "appropriate measures" to ensure the safety of people crossing. He did not say how often this has happened or give dates.
Latipov said the regime's border control and law enforcement bodies are doing everything possible to keep critical infrastructure running, including the railway line and the recently reopened airport in Sokhumi. He said passenger traffic, including from Russia, is increasing.
Khoshtaria Expresses Solidarity With Garibashvili, Calls Him a Victim of Political Retribution
Elene Khoshtaria, leader of the Droa party, who is currently in detention, said she stands in solidarity with Irakli Garibashvili, whom she described as "a victim of political retribution." She made the statement in a social media post.
Khoshtaria wrote that society should actively support even its political opponents and enemies when the system treats them unjustly. In her view, it is precisely in cases involving people who are "completely unacceptable" to society that it must speak out against such methods.
She said legal accountability must be enforced through legal mechanisms, not political motives or inhumane treatment, and that until this is accepted, "we will continue going around in circles."
Khoshtaria described the opposition's struggle as civilisational rather than a fight for power, aimed at building a "people-centred system." She said this gives society the opportunity to gain the moral high ground while its values are still taking shape. Supporting opponents who are treated unjustly, she wrote, is what distinguishes the opposition from the Russians and Georgian Dream.
"We will never become like them," Khoshtaria said, adding that the opposition will compete with them neither in revenge nor in violence. "We will undoubtedly defeat them through the power of truth."
