Tbilisi: Domestic political tensions flared again in ex-Soviet Georgia Thursday after police and protesters clashed in Tbilisi at the start of controversial NATO military exercises that have infuriated Russia.
The clashes late Wednesday — the first major outbreak of violence since opposition protests against President Mikheil Saakashvili began a month ago — came only a day after Georgia said it had peacefully put down a mutiny.
They underlined the risk of political instability in Georgia at a time of mounting internal criticism against Saakashvili, a flamboyant leader who has vowed to take his country into NATO but has become an arch foe of Russia.
Officials accused opposition supporters of trying to storm a main police station and said police had used truncheons to repel protesters trying to climb a fence into the building.
The opposition said police had attacked the protesters and opened fire with rubber bullets, which officials denied. Police said 29 people were injured in the clashes, including six officers, but none of the injuries were serious.
Opposition supporters have staged rallies since April 9 to demand Saakashvili’s resignation.
There were no further incidents overnight, officials said, but the clashes stoked fears that the protests could boil over into wider unrest.
In an apparent bid to cool the situation, officials said they had released three detained opposition activists on bail following an appeal by the Georgian Orthodox Church.
The clashes broke out after protesters had gathered outside the police station to demand the release of the activists, who had been arrested for allegedly assaulting a television journalist.
Opposition leaders were meeting Thursday afternoon and were expected to announce a fresh wave of protest actions.
“The opposition is not going to step back. The struggle continues,” said one opposition leader, Koba Davitashvili of the People’s Party.
“This regime is criminal, they used plastic and rubber bullets which is against the law,” he said.
Several hundred protesters gathered in the afternoon outside Georgia’s parliament building in central Tbilisi, where the opposition had set up dozens of mock jail cells, and blocked the main street, Rustaveli Avenue.
Georgia and NATO on Wednesday kicked off a month of military exercises involving at least 1,100 soldiers from more than a dozen NATO countries and partners in command and field exercises.
Russia fiercely objects to Georgia hosting the exercises and is also opposed to Georgia’s bid to join the alliance.
Moscow, which fought a brief war with Georgia in August over the rebel South Ossetia region, earlier this week announced the expulsion of two Canadian diplomats working for NATO in Moscow.
Georgia said Tuesday it had peacefully put down a mutiny at a military base outside Tbilisi aimed at disrupting the NATO exercises.
Tbilisi initially accused Russia of backing an armed coup — an accusation Moscow described as “insane” — but later backed away from the claims.
In another sign of tension, security talks between Georgian, Russian and South Ossetian officials were called off Thursday because of disagreements about where the meeting would be held. Georgia and Russia traded accusations of blame for the cancellation.
The protests have been the biggest against Saakashvili’s rule since the war with Russia, but the number of participants has steadily dwindled after peaking at 60,000 when protests started.
Opponents accuse Saakashvili of having mishandled the five-day war and of having become increasingly autocratic since coming to power after the peaceful 2003 Rose Revolution.
Tensions have increased in recent days but officials have vowed there would be no repeat of events in November 2007 when riot police used water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse thousands of protesters.
