70-year-old man kidnapped by occupants

A 70-year-old, Amiran Gugutishvili, was detained near the Gugutiantkari village of eastern Gori by so-called separatist border guards.

Gugutishvili’s house was burned down during the 2008 Russia-Georgia war, and his family now live in an old school building in the village of Koshki.

Reportedly, Gugutishvili was collecting firewood near the occupation line in his own garden when the armed people in military uniforms appeared and took him away. No one has so far contacted the family.

Gori government official says the detainee has health problems.

A total of 341 Georgian citizens were illegally detained for crossing of the Abkhazian Occupational lines and 162 Georgian citizens were illegally detained for crossing the South Ossetian (Tskhinvali) Occupational line in 2015, based on the data of Georgia’s Interior Ministry.

In the years 2009-2015, the occupational forces detained a total number of 2481 Georgian citizens for the so-called “illegal border crossing” of which 1,641 were detained by occupation forces in Abkhazia and 840 people were detained by occupation forces in the Tskhinvali Region.

Of course, the figures increased last year.

Russia, which recognized the independence of Georgia’s historic lands of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali in the wake of the 2008 war, now occupies 20 percent of Georgia's land.

From year to year, the occupants carry out their policy of creeping annexation and kidnap people from their own homes and then release them after they pay a fine.

The detentions have turned into a type of business and income for the occupant forces.

The only thing Georgia can do in response is to inform the international community, which should take more adequate reaction.

The actions of Russia in and near Georgia’s occupied regions are both alarming and shameful.