Killed Terrorism Suspect’s Father Announces Rallies after Ramadan
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Tuesday, June 5
Father of the 19-year-old killed terrorism suspect from Georgia’s Muslim-populated Pankisi Gorge has announced rallies after the Ramadan fast is over.
Ramadan is observed by Muslims around the world as a period of fasting to commemorate "the best of times".
It celebrates the moment the Koran was unveiled to Muhammad, according to Islamic belief.
Ramadan in 2018 began on the evening of Tuesday, May 15, and will end on the evening of Thursday, June 14.
Malkhaz Machalikashvili, father of Temirlan Machalikashvili, who participates in the rallies organized by David Saralidze, believes that the Georgian people will stand by him.
Machalikashvili, who claims that his son was mistakenly killed by a special unit serviceman, says that everyone will see that the Pankisi Gorge brings up heroes and not terrorists.
He is demanding touch punishment of the head of the State Security Service Vakhtang Gomelauri and all the people who “killed his innocent son.”
During the rally on Rustaveli Avenue organized by Saralidze, Machalikashvili has delivered several speeches.
During one of the speeches he said that he and some people in the Gorge agreed to “blew themselves up” at the State Security Service headquarters in Tbilisi .
“However, I changed my mind as innocent people would die,” Machalikashvili said.
Temirlan Machalikashvili died on January 10, 2018 from the severe head injury he received during the December 26 raid.
The Pankisi raid came after the large-scale anti-terrorist operation in Tbilisi on November 21-22, which saw Islamic State terrorist Akhmed Chatayev and his two accomplices killed and one of them- detained.
Georgia’s State Security Service claims Chatayev and his group planned attacks on diplomats in Turkey and Georgia.
The December raid in Pankisi aimed at detaining the people who supported Chatayev to come to Georgia, buy weapons and find an accommodation, security officials stated.
During the Pankisi raid Machalikashvili was wounded and four others were detained for alleged support of terrorism, envisaging 17-20 years in prison or life imprisonment.
The Machalikashvili family is sure Temirlan was killed mistakenly and they intend to file a lawsuit at the European Court of Human Rights.
Based on unofficial information, more than 25 youngsters from Pankisi have been killed as warriors of the terrorist organization-Islamic State.
