Georgian police clash with protesters after ruling party declares victory in local elections

(Patria) - Georgian riot police used pepper spray and water cannons on Saturday to force protesters away from the presidential palace in the capital Tbilisi, as the opposition organized large demonstrations on the day of local elections, Reuters reported late last night.

The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party said it had achieved victory in every municipality across the country of 3.7 million people in elections boycotted by the two largest opposition blocs.

Shortly before polling stations closed, some protesters tried to break into the
presidential palace in Tbilisi, a Reuters witness said, after opposition figures called for a "peaceful revolution" against GD, which they accuse of being pro-Russian and authoritarian.

Georgia's Health Ministry, cited by media, said 21 security personnel and six protesters were injured in clashes in central Tbilisi.

Protests since last October

Georgia's pro-Western opposition has been organizing protests since October last year, when GD won parliamentary elections that its critics say were rigged. GD has rejected the allegations.

Once one of the most pro-Western nations to emerge from the ashes of the Soviet Union, Georgia's ties with the West have deteriorated since the start of Russia's war in Ukraine. The government froze European Union accession talks shortly after last year's vote, abruptly halting a long-standing national goal and triggering large-scale demonstrations that have continued ever since.

Thousands of protesters gathered at central Freedom Square and Rustaveli Avenue, waving
Georgian and European Union flags.

A smaller group of protesters marched to the presidential palace, and police repelled them after they tried to break into the building. Some of them then barricaded a nearby street, lighting fires and confronting riot police.

Georgian Dream, widely believed to be controlled by founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, the country's richest man and a former prime minister, denies being pro-Russian. It claims it wants to join the European Union while maintaining peace with Russia, its large northern neighbor.

Prime minister blames EU ambassador for unrest

Georgian Prime Minister Irakly Kobakhidze said yesterday that the European Union ambassador to Tbilisi, Pawel Herczynski, is to blame for the current unrest in Tbilisi, TASS reported.

"You know that some foreigners, including an EU representative, directly supported an attempt to overthrow the
constitutional order. In this context, the EU ambassador to Georgia bears special responsibility for this," Kobakhidze said at a press conference.