Abkhazia

With a relative lull reported in fighting in the area around Tskinvali as Georgian forces pull back. Attention is being turned to Georgia's other separatist region Abkhazia.

Reports were coming in yesterday of Abkhaz troop mobilisations and bombing raids by "Abkhaz" jets on the Kodori Gorge. The Kodori Gorge (as discussed in an earlier post) is a strategic location within Abkhazia which is occupied by Georgian forces.

UN assistant secretary-general for peacekeeping Edmond Mulet is quoted by agencies as saying "At this point we are particularly concerned that the conflict appears to be spreading beyond South Ossetia into Abkhazia,"

Not that you should believe everything you read on the Russian News Agency Interfax (source of some dubious martial law rumours the other day) But they're reporting Sergi Bagapash has made three very concerning statements:

1) Georgian troops will be pushed out of Kodori - Bagapsh
2) Abkhazia utterly rejects dialogue with Tbilisi - Bagapsh
3) Abkhazia plans to "restore order" in Georgia's Zugdidi district -Bagapsh

We have been anticipating 1) since the bombings and the troop buildups yesterday, and 2) Is another perfect example of the ridiculous inflamatory rhetoric you hear from both sides at the moment, I really with these fuckers would learn to watch their mouths.

3) Is new and worrying. Zugdidi is a city just on the Georgian side of the Abkhaz border. My organisation runs a number of programmes there and I carried out a training there a few months ago. It's a nice place, though the plastic palm trees that line the streets are somewhat tacky.

An Abkhaz incursion into Zugdidi would bring the war, on land into Georgia propper for the first time. Given current rhetoric around "genocide", "ethnic cleasing" and horror stories about acts by Georgian troops being bandied about by the Russians it could be expected to be a bloody assault.

Not only would casualties be disasterous but the war enter a new and dangerous phase on Georgian soil (though if you ask Georgians they will tell you it never left Georgian soil, which is true in a sense but I don't want to get into this debate)

I'm still watching in horror and disgust. Once more, I'm fine, I'll give an update on the status in Tbilisi as soon as some friends get back to the office with news.

UPDATE: 14:53 Georgia Time.. Interfax is reporting that Zugdidi is being prepared for evacuation in anticipation of action by Abkhaz forces.