18 August 2008, 12:34
United Nations: Georgian city of Gori is devastated by marauders
Yesterday, on August 17, the first column of UN's humanitarian aid arrived to the city of Gori (Georgia). According to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees, the city is devastated by marauders and looks completely deserted.
It was reported earlier that Russian military units, which kept Gori under control refused to let Georgian police into the city.
"It looks like buildings were not strongly damaged, but traces of mass marauding are seen everywhere: both in shops and private houses," runs the UN message.
According to UN representatives, the city is completely deserted. The Reuters reports that except for 50-60 persons who came to the central square to receive humanitarian aid, all the residents had abandoned their city.
In total, according to the UN data, over 158,600 residents of Georgia were forced to leave their houses.
According to the "News-Georgia", the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs has categorically refuted the message of the Russian Ministry of Defence that was promulgated on Sunday, August 17, that the Georgian party was preparing broad-scale provocations in the city of Gori.
Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Defence had stated that the Georgian party was preparing a huge provocation in Gori against Russian troops. According to this information, an armed group was urgently formed in the vicinity of Gori comprising Georgian UNSO (Ukrainian Nationalist Self-Defence) Ukrainian nationalists and Chechen militants who are now in Georgia; the group members dressed in Russian military uniform would start marauding in Gori and scorning local residents; then, the facts would be video filmed and presented to the world as "atrocities of Russian soldiery."
