EU Monitoring Mission Issues Statement on Death of Georgian in Tskhinvali

The European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) has issued a statement on the death of Archil Tatunashvili at the hands of the Kremlin-backed Tskhinvali authorities yesterday.

The statement reads: "On 23 February, the EU Monitoring Mission (EUMM) learned about the death of Mr. Archil Tatunashvili. The EUMM wishes to extend its condolences to the family of the deceased.

The EUMM, in its monitoring capacity and in line with its mandate, continues to follow developments closely. The Mission Hotline has been and continues to be actively used for communication regarding this tragic event.

The EUMM believes that it is of paramount importance to establish co-operation so all necessary documentation is exchanged to ascertain the cause of death of the deceased. The Mission looks forward to full, thorough and transparent examinations into the death of Mr Tatunashvili.

The EUMM stands ready to support ongoing investigations and to facilitate discussions through the Ergneti Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism, which is co-chaired by the EUMM and the OSCE, or any other appropriate format participants may agree to."

Archil Tatunashvili, 35, had been detained by the Russian-backed Tskhinvali authorities on February 22, thereafter taken to Tskhinvali “for questioning.”

The so-called Security Service claimed Tatunashvili had “resisted being moved to a detention cell and as a result sustained injuries, was knocked down and rolled down the stairs,” after which he was taken to hospital, where he died after two hours. They also claim that, according to the preliminary results of the autopsy on the body, Tatunashvili was found to have died from “acute heart failure.”

Tskhinvali accused Tatunashvili of “genocide against South Ossetians,” saying he had been a member of the Georgian Army and was apparently “preparing new acts of sabotage on the territory of the republic shortly before the election of the President of the Russian Federation.”

Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili, spoke about Archil Tatunashvili’s death during his meeting with Danish Foreign Minister, Anders Samuelsen last week, saying that he “was a Georgian soldier who served global peace and security in international missions,” who had been “kidnapped and killed” in the occupied region. He described the incident as “a totally disgusting murder,” which “added a great pain to the tragedy of our country’s occupation.”

Máté Földi