UNM Chair Khabeishvili calls for peaceful mass gathering in Tbilisi

Levan Khabeishvili, Chair of the opposition United National Movement’s Political Council, on Tuesday urged supporters to gather in large numbers at 20:00 in Tbilisi in response to what he described as coordinated violence against protesters.

According to Khabeishvili, women were beaten, spat on, and insulted during incidents that he claimed were orchestrated with the involvement of the newly appointed head of Georgia’s State Security Service, Mamuka Mdinaradze.

“This was coordinated with Mdinaradze. He is now trying to play the role of the ‘iron hand’. They were tasked to go and prove their manhood, but instead proved themselves to be cowards — attacking and spitting on women. Obviously, it was agreed upon, otherwise the police standing there would have detained them immediately,” Khabeishvili said.

He described the events as a sign of “panic” from the ruling party and urged citizens to respond with peaceful protest.

“This is Ivanishvili’s hysteria, a sign of the end. The Georgian people will not waste this moment. Today, at 20:00, as many people as possible must gather, and the response must, of course, be peaceful. Every day we will be more, and by the 4th [of October] you will no longer be here,” Khabeishvili stated.