Georgia’s MIA Launches Probe into Religious Attacks
TBILISI – Georgia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs has opened an investigation into the growing number of religious-based attacks involving Christian and Muslim communities in the southern Samtskhe-Javakheti region after a disagreement turned violent over plans to build a cemetery.
According to police reports, Muslims from villages near the town of Adigeni arrived in the city center to discuss the construction of a cemetery. They were later attacked by a group of 20-30 unidentified men. Three Muslims were severely injured, having suffered facial and head wounds.
Local law enforcement and municipal officials say the situation has calmed and they are now attempting to act as mediators between the two groups.
The area’s Muslims had applied for and were approved to build a separate cemetery in Adigeni. At present, the community is forced to bury their dead in Zanavi, a village located more than six kilometers away.
Samtskhe-Javakheti is an ethnically and religiously diverse region along Georgia’s southern borders with Turkey and Armenia. It is home to large historic communities of Christian Armenians and Georgians, as well as Muslim Azeris.
Photo: Samkretis Karibche