Parliamentary investigation accuses former Georgian government of failing to warn civilians before 2008 war

Georgia’s Vice Speaker and head of a parliamentary investigative commission, Thea Tsulukiani, has accused the former United National Movement (UNM) government of ignoring warnings ahead of the 2008 war with Russia and failing to protect civilians.

Presenting the findings of the inquiry on Tuesday, Tsulukiani said the authorities knew by late July 2008 that tensions in the conflict zone had reached “the highest point” but took no measures to evacuate residents from areas at risk.

She added that testimony from former foreign minister Grigol Vashadze confirmed the evacuation of civilians “was not a goal of the regime.”

The commission also heard from Pridon Zoidze, brother of a Georgian officer killed in the battle of Shindisi during the war, who alleged the UNM government did not recover the bodies of fallen soldiers. According to Tsulukiani, it was Patriarch Ilia II, together with senior clerics, who entered the conflict zone to oversee the retrieval of the dead.

The inquiry further concluded that the war left an additional 111 settlements under Russian control, along with the previously government-held Kodori Gorge.