20 November 2018, 10:09
Pankisi residents join protest action held by Saralidze and Machalikashvili
In Tbilisi, residents of the Pankisi Gorge have joined the protest action held by Zaza Saralidze, the father of a schoolboy killed in Tbilisi, and Malkhaz Machalikashvili, whose son perished in a special operation in Pankisi.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that two schoolboys, including Zaza Saralidze's son, died on December 1, 2017, from stab wounds received in a brawl. Saralidze asserts that investigators are sheltering the culprits and demands a fair punishment for them. Since September 10, he has been holding a protest action in front of the building of the Georgian Parliament. On November 11, Malkhaz Machalikashvili, whose son was shot dead in a special operation conducted in the Pankisi Gorge, joined the protest action.
On December 26, 2017, Temirlan Machalikashvili, 19, was wounded during a special operation in the Pankisi Gorge, and died two weeks later in hospital. According to law enforcers, he had tried to throw a grenade at them. His relatives assert that the boy was shot dead while in bed; and they have repeatedly gone out to protests.
Malkhaz Machalikashvili said that members of 37 family clans live in the Pankisi Gorge; and all of them came to the rally in Tbilisi on November 19. "They (the residents of Pankisi) are not interested in politics or parties; they demand from the authorities to admit the committed crime," Mr Machalikashvili said in the footage of the Georgian "Rustavi-2" TV Company, which was watched by the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 19, 2018 at 11:05 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Inna Kukudzhanova Source: CK correspondent
