Georgian opposition leaders were beaten and blamed by members of the ruling party

The British Ambassador to Georgia, Gareth Ward, said that the developments in the political crisis in recent days have been “extremely worrying” violence against opposition politicians and the arbitrary detention of journalists and demonstrators is unacceptable,” he said.

Gakharia is not the first opposition leader to face violence in recent weeks. Nika Gvaramia, the head of the Coalition for Change, was knocked to the ground unconscious when he was arrested in the capital, Tbilisi, last month.

Dozens of Georgian journalists and protesters have also been attacked and injured by pro-government thugs during nighttime protests.

Georgian Dream has accused the EU and the US of democratic backsliding, and opposition groups accuse the party and its billionaire founder Bidzina Ivanishvili of pursuing Russia’s interests, while the majority of Georgians want to join the EU.

Giorgi Gakharia was formerly a leading member of Georgian Dream until 2021 as interior minister and then prime minister, before setting up the opposition party for Georgia.

In a statement, Georgian ombudsman Levan Ioseliani condemned the attack on Gakharia and Zviad Koridze. He called for an immediate response “so that attacks on politicians and journalists are not incited”.

Gakharia’s party was one of four opposition groups that secured seats in the October election, but they all refused to take their seats, accusing the ruling party of vote rigging.

The European Parliament has called for a rerun of the election, describing it as neither free nor fair, and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has accused the government of using repression against the opposition.