The State Security Service of Georgia (SSG) detained several well-known representatives of opposition parties at once.
One of them was Levan Khabeishvili, a member of the "National Movement", who is accused of publicly promising bribes to officials. According to the SSS, Khabeishvili called on law enforcement officers to receive a reward in case of refusal to perform official duties during anti-government rallies and for providing classified information. The amount of the "bribe" he promised reached 200,000 US dollars. According to the SSS, his actions are classified under Article 339 of the Criminal Code of Georgia and may entail a punishment in the form of deprivation of freedom for a term of four to seven years.
During the detention of Khabeishvili, Murtaz Zodelava was also detained, to whom, according to the SSS, Khabeishvili gave his mobile phone. The agency specifies that Zodelava tried to escape and physically resisted the employees of the Anti-Corruption Agency. His actions fall under Article 353 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which carries a prison sentence of two to five years.
In addition, the State Security Service reported the detention of former Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze. He is accused of legalizing illegal income in the amount of over 1.5 million lari. According to the special service, the Burchuladze family, "in order to conceal and disguise the origin of particularly large illegal and/or unjustified property," purchased real estate in Spain in January 2025 for 544,000 euros, which the politician did not indicate in the declaration of property of an official. The investigation is being conducted under Articles 194 and 332 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which provide for a punishment in the form of imprisonment for up to 12 years.
The fifth Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili harshly condemned the detention of the leaders of the United National Movement, stressing that every step of the ruling party "turns into a new disgrace for Georgia, tarnishes the country's reputation and undermines trust."
"I would like to respond to today's absolutely shameful series of arrests. You have groundlessly and illegally detained another political leader. Do you think that this will intimidate and silence the people?!" Zurabishvili wrote on a social network.
The third President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, in turn, commented on the series of detentions.
"Dictator Ivanishvili insidiously detained the real leaders of the opposition - Levan Khabeishvili and Murtaza Zodelava. This is an expression of extreme panic and helplessness of the criminal regime. I am not even talking about the shameful and pathetic motives for which they were detained. We need a general mobilization and an offensive. We will definitely win! Glory to Georgia! " Saakashvili wrote.
