Casualty count of war in South Ossetia goes up

So far, neither of the parties of the conflict that has burst out in South Ossetia has failed to present complete data on their casualties in the tragic events, however, the count of warfare victims from the first days of fights in the region is in thousands.

"Probably, in thousands, since absolutely everything lies in ruins," said on August 8 Inal Pliev, chief of the information department of the South-Ossetian part of the MCC (Mixed Control Commission), answering the question about the potential number of victims.

In the evening of the same day, Eduard Kokoity, President of the non-recognized republic, stated that over 1400 persons fell victim of the attack of Georgian troops on South Ossetia.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has declared today that, according to the latest data, in the course of the warfare in the conflict zone over two thousand persons were lost, mainly citizens of Russia, as the "Interfax" reports.

The Georgian party asserts, according to Radio Liberty, that number of victims in South Ossetia is much less than the Russia-promulgated figure.

On August 10 in the evening, Georgian TV reported about 95 casualties in the military actions in the territory of Georgia and about 400 wounded persons, 39 of them are under CPR (artificial respiration).

Also, it was reported on August 8, that during the fights in South Ossetia over ten Russian peacekeepers were lost, and about 30 wounded. On the following day, information appeared about three more killed peacekeepers; and the number of wounded among them varied from 70 to 150.

Today, it has also become known that journalists Alexander Klimchuk and Grigol (Giga) Chikhladze were murdered in South Ossetia. Journalists Taimuraz Kikuradze and Winston Federly were with them and got wounded.

The personnel of the "Caucasian Knot" editorial board condoles with the residents of South Ossetia and Georgia who suffered in the course of the warfare and lost their relatives in the fights, and with relatives and colleagues of the perished journalists and peacekeepers.