New war on its way

[BeliAndjeo]

Georgia clashes reignite war fears

By Matthew Collin

BBC News, Tbilisi




South Ossetia says it has evacuated hundreds of women and children

An elderly woman pointed to a hole in her roof which she said was made by a rocket fired by South Ossetian separatist militiamen.

"We know we've been lucky this time," said the woman, Makvala, who lives in Zemo Nikozi, a Georgian-controlled village in the South Ossetian conflict zone.
"This is the second time our house has been hit. It's the worst violence since the civil war."

In the nearby village of Ergneti, 64-year-old Omari said he was lying in bed in the early morning when a rocket struck his house during last weekend's fighting. He rolled up his sleeve to display a wound which he said was caused by flying shrapnel.

"Neither Ossetians nor Georgians want to kill each other," he said. "But someone doesn't want peace and is trying to provoke a war."

South Ossetia, a poor rural province which lies on Georgia's mountainous border with Russia, is a patchwork of ethnic Ossetian and Georgian villages - some of them mixed.

Most of the tiny territory is controlled by the separatists, who receive economic and political support from Moscow, and say they want to join up with North Ossetia inside the Russian Federation. The rest of the region remains under Georgian government rule.

Women and children leave

On the other side of the dividing line, people are also frightened that the situation could escalate into full-blown military conflict.



A young man called Vakhtang, who lives in the separatist capital, Tskhinvali, but took his wife and children across the border to Russia on Wednesday, said people didn't feel safe to walk the streets.

"Tskhinvali feels empty. Almost all women and children were evacuated," he told the BBC.

"Those people who remain hide in cellars or on ground floors of buildings. Every night people feel the worst is going to happen."

This is the most serious fighting in South Ossetia since battles in 2004. Many people in the region also have bitter memories of the civil war in the early 1990s after the fall of the Soviet Union.

The separatist authorities have accused Georgia of preparing to seize back control - and they have vowed to defend themselves.

"We are ready to stop attempts to annex our territory, and we will not only stop them but, should the Georgian side fail to pull out all its armed groups, as we promised before, we will start to clear them out," warned the separatist leader, Eduard Kokoity.

The Georgian President, Mikhail Saakashvili, has said Georgia does not want war. He said confrontation would benefit nobody, and called for direct dialogue.

Georgia accuses Russia

The Georgian Minister for Reintegration, Temur Yakobashvili, said it was the separatists who were trying to drag Georgia into a dangerous new conflict.



Georgia accuses Russian peacekeepers of helping the rebels

He also blamed Russia for equipping and financing separatist forces.

"Russia has to take full responsibility for arming these secessionists, for providing them not only with weapons but money," he said.
"They have to share the blame for shelling civilians and instigating war and instability."

Georgia's pro-Western government believes Russia has been fuelling the separatist conflict in South Ossetia and the country's other breakaway region, Abkhazia, as part of its attempts to stop Georgia joining Nato.

Georgia claims that its former Soviet masters in Moscow are using the separatists as pawns in a much larger political game.

The Kremlin does not want the Western military alliance to extend its reach further into the former Soviet Union.

Tensions have escalated in both South Ossetia and Abkhazia since Nato countries agreed in April that Georgia would, at some unspecified date in the future, become a member.

Russia has peacekeeping troops in the breakaway regions. The separatists see them as a guarantee of their security, but Georgia increasingly views them as an occupying force.

Moscow has also given most people in both regions Russian passports, and has vowed to defend its new citizens if war breaks out - raising fears of a much more deadly confrontation.

BBC NEWS | Europe | Georgia clashes reignite war fears

[BeliAndjeo]

Georgia offers rebels ceasefire

Georgian jets attack separatists in South Ossetia

Georgian troops are observing a three-hour ceasefire to let civilians leave the capital of separatist South Ossetia, the foreign ministry says.
Georgia had launched a major offensive against rebel strongholds and claims to have surrounded the capital Tskhinvali.
Russia, who Georgia accuses of arming the rebels, is reported to be moving troops into South Ossetia.
At least 15 civilians are said to have died, as well as several Russian peacekeepers based in Tskhinvali.
Nato, the US and the European Union have all called for an immediate end to the hostilities.

I must protect the life and dignity of Russian citizens wherever they are. We will not allow their deaths to go unpunished

Dmitry Medvedev
Russian President

Georgian President Mikhail Saakasvili called on reservists to sign up for duty and accused Russia of sending fighter jets to bomb Georgian towns - claims denied by Moscow.
But Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has promised to defend Russia citizens in South Ossetia.
"I must protect the life and dignity of Russian citizens wherever they are," Interfax quoted him as saying. "We will not allow their deaths to go unpunished. Those responsible will receive a deserved punishment."
Residents of Tskhinvali were reported to have been sheltering in basements as massive explosions rocked the city. Georgian jets also targeted separatist positions. Both sides blamed each other for breaking an earlier ceasefire agreed on Thursday.
Georgian Foreign Minister Ekaterine Tkeshelashvili told the BBC the present situation was calm as Georgian troops were observing a unilateral ceasefire which started at 1100GMT.
She said they wanted to ensure that any civilians who wanted to leave the conflict zone could do so safely.

Russian troops

An amnesty has also been extended to any separatist fighters willing to lay down their arms, she said.

On reports of Russian forces moving into South Ossetia, she said the Russian Federation's efforts to get involved militarily had to be stopped.
International Red Cross spokeswoman Anna Nelson said they had received reports that hospitals in Tskhinvali were having trouble coping with the influx of casualties and ambulances were having trouble reaching the injured.
Irina Gagloyeva, a South Ossetian official in Tskhinvali, described the scene in the beseiged city overnight after the Georgian military action started.
"Virtually all the people of the city are in shelters, myself included. It started at midnight, and has barely stopped for a minute," she told the BBC. "Can you hear? That's rockets. All my windows have blown out. Thirty-five thousand residents of our capital have become the hostages of Georgian fascism."
A spokesman for the Russian peacekeepers in South Ossetia told Interfax news agency that Georgian shells directly hit barracks in Tskhinvali, killing several peacekeepers.
Georgian Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze said Georgia had simply run out of patience with attacks by separatist militias in recent days and had had to move in to restore peace in South Ossetia.
"As soon as a durable peace takes hold we need to move forward with dialogue and peaceful negotiations," he told reporters.

Russian passports

Georgia accuses Russia of arming the separatists who have been trying to break away since the civil war in the 1990s. Moscow denies the claim.
Russia called an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to respond to the crisis, but members failed to agree on a Russian statement calling on both sides to renounce the use of force.

The BBC's James Rodgers in Moscow says Russia has always said it supports the territorial integrity of Georgia but also that it would defend its citizens. Many South Ossetians hold Russian passports.

Hundreds of fighters from Russia and Georgia's other breakaway region of Abkhazia are reportedly heading to aid the separatist troops.
China, where the Olympic Games opens on Friday, called for worldwide truce during the sporting event.

BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Georgian jets bomb separatists

BBC NEWS | Europe | Georgia offers rebels ceasefire

[Leland Gaunt]

Sounds pretty ugly. I doubt that there are many ethnic Russians in Ossetia though.

[BeliAndjeo]

Originally Posted by Leland Gaunt

Sounds pretty ugly. I doubt that there are many ethnic Russians in Ossetia though.

as i heard,more then 80% are ethnic Russians,but i don't know for sure..correct me if i am wrong..

[Leland Gaunt]

Originally Posted by BeliAndjeo

as i heard,more then 80% are ethnic Russians,but i don't know for sure..correct me if i am wrong..

I doubt it. From pics what Ive seen they look rather like other people from Caucasus.

[drgs]

Originally Posted by BeliAndjeo

as i heard,more then 80% are ethnic Russians,but i don't know for sure..correct me if i am wrong..

90% are russian citizens

[Gottslav]

Originally Posted by BeliAndjeo

as i heard,more then 80% are ethnic Russians,but i don't know for sure..correct me if i am wrong..

No, that's not true. According to the last census 2.8% are Russians or 2,016. The rest are Ossetians and Georgians mainly.

[BeliAndjeo]

Russian tanks enter South Ossetia

Ok,guys,this is becomming very serious...

BBC NEWS | World | Russian tanks enter S Ossetia

BBC NEWS | Europe | Russian tanks enter South Ossetia

[Marcus Marulus]

Georgia says Russian aircraft bombed its air bases

By MUSA SADULAYEV, Associated Press Writer


In this image, made from television, Russian tanks are moving towards the breakaway South Ossetia republic's capital, Tskhinvali, on Friday, Aug. 8, 2008. Russia's Defense Ministry says it has sent reinforcements to its peacekeepers deployed to South Ossetia to help end bloodshed. Georgian officials confirmed that the Russian convoy had crossed the border and was advancing toward Tskhinvali. Georgia launched a massive attack Friday to regain control over South Ossetia, using heavy artillery, aircraft and armor. South Ossetian officials said at least 15 people were killed Friday and an unspecified number were wounded.(AP Photo/APTN)

DZHAVA, Georgia - Russia sent columns of tanks and reportedly bombed Georgian air bases Friday after Georgia launched a major military offensive Friday to retake the breakaway province of South Ossetia, threatening to ignite a broader conflict.

Hundreds of civilians were reported dead in the worst outbreak of hostilities since the province won defacto independence in a war against Georgia that ended in 1992. Witnesses said the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali was devastated.

"I saw bodies lying on the streets, around ruined buildings, in cars," said Lyudmila Ostayeva, 50, who had fled with her family to Dzhava, a village near the border with Russia. "It's impossible to count them now. There is hardly a single building left undamaged."

The fighting broke out as much of the world's attention was focused on the start of the Olympic Games and many leaders, including Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Bush, were in Beijing.

The timing suggests Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili may have been counting on surprise to fulfill his longtime pledge to wrest back control of South Ossetia — a key to his hold on power.

Saakashvili agreed the timing was not coincidental, but accused Russia of being the aggressor. "Most decision makers have gone for the holidays," he said in an interview with CNN. "Brilliant moment to attack a small country."

The United States was sending an envoy to the region on Friday to meet with the parties involved to try to end hostilities.

"We support Georgia's territorial integrity," State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos told reporters. "We are working on mediation efforts to secure a cease-fire."

South Ossetian separatist leader Eduard Kokoity claimed hundreds of civilians had been killed.

Ten Russian peacekeepers were killed and 30 wounded when their barracks were hit in Georgian shelling, said Russian Ground Forces spokesman Col. Igor Konashenkov. Russia has soldiers in South Ossetia as peacekeeping forces but Georgia alleges they back the separatists.

Georgia, which borders the Black Sea between Turkey and Russia, was ruled by Moscow for most of the two centuries preceding the breakup of the Soviet Union. Georgia, a staunch U.S. ally, has angered Russia by seeking NATO membership — a bid Moscow regards as part of a Western effort to weaken its influence in the region.

Speaking earlier on Georgian television, Saakashvili accused Russia of sending aircraft to bomb Georgian territory, which Russia denied.
Russia's Defense Ministry said it was sending reinforcements for its peacekeepers, and Russian state television and Georgian officials reported a convoy of tanks had crossed the border. The convoy was expected to reach the provincial capital, Tskhinvali, by evening, Channel One television said.

Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temur Yakobashvili said government troops were now in full control of the city.

"We are facing Russian aggression," said Georgia's Security Council chief Kakha Lomaya. "They have sent in their troops and weapons and they are bombing our towns."

Putin has warned that the Georgian attack will draw retaliation and the Defense Ministry pledged to protect South Ossetians, most of whom have Russian citizenship.

Chairing a session of his Security Council in the Kremlin, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev also vowed that Moscow will protect Russian citizens.

"In accordance with the constitution and federal law, I, as president of Russia, am obliged to protect lives and dignity of Russian citizens wherever they are located," Medvedev said, according to Russian news reports. "We won't allow the death of our compatriots go unpunished."

An AP reporter saw tanks and other heavy weapons concentrating on the Russian side of the border with South Ossetia — supporting the Russian TV reports of an incursion. Some villagers were fleeing into Russia.

"I saw them (the Georgians) shelling my village," said Maria, who gave only her first name. She said she and other villagers spent the night in a field and then fled toward the Russian border as the fighting escalated.

Yakobashvili said Georgian forces have shot down four Russian combat planes over Georgian territory. He gave no details. Russia's Defense Ministry denied an earlier Georgia report about one Russian plane downed and has had no immediate comment on the latest claim.

Yakobashvili said that one Russian plane had dropped a bomb on the Vaziani military base near the Georgian capital, but no one was hurt.

More than 1,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers were at the base last month to teach combat skills to Georgian troops. Georgia has about 2,000 troops in Iraq, making it the third-largest contributor to coalition forces after the U.S. and Britain.

South Ossetia officials said Georgia attacked with aircraft, armor and heavy artillery. Georgian troops fired missiles at Tskhinvali, an official said, and many buildings were on fire.

Georgia's president said Russian aircraft bombed several Georgian villages and other civilian facilities.

"A full-scale aggression has been launched against Georgia," Saakashvili said in a televised statement. He also announced a full military mobilization with reservists being called into action.

A senior Russian diplomat in charge of the South Ossetian conflict, Yuri Popov, dismissed the Georgian claims of Russian bombings as misinformation, the RIA-Novosti news agency reported.

Russia's Defense Ministry denounced the Georgian attack as a "dirty adventure." "Blood shed in South Ossetia will weigh on their conscience," the ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site.

Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev later chaired a session of his Security Council in the Kremlin, vowing that Moscow will protect Russian citizens.

"In accordance with the constitution and federal law, I, as president of Russia, am obliged to protect lives and dignity of Russian citizens wherever they are located," Medvedev said, according to Russian news reports. "We won't allow the death of our compatriots go unpunished."

Saakashvili long has pledged to restore Tbilisi's rule over South Ossetia and another breakaway province, Abkhazia. Both regions have run their own affairs without international recognition since splitting from Georgia in the early 1990s and built up ties with Moscow.

Relations between Georgia and Russia worsened notably this year as Georgia pushed to join NATO and Russia dispatched additional peacekeeper forces to Abkhazia.

The Georgian attack came just hours after Saakashvili announced a unilateral cease-fire in a television broadcast late Thursday in which he also urged South Ossetian separatist leaders to enter talks on resolving the conflict.

Georgian officials later blamed South Ossetian separatists for thwarting the cease-fire by shelling Georgian villages in the area.

Associated Press writers Misha Dzhindzhikhashvili in Tbilisi, Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow and John Heilprin at the United Nations contributed to this report.

[source]

[Leland Gaunt]

Originally Posted by drgs

90% are russian citizens

Russian citizen doesn't equal being Russian by ethnicity. Most of them are just russified Ossetians. But it's still getting quite disturbing nonetheless. I hope they will manage to settle this conflict in a peaceful way.

[BeliAndjeo]

Originally Posted by Leland Gaunt

Russian citizen doesn't equal being Russian by ethnicity. Most of them are just russified Ossetians. But it's still getting quite disturbing nonetheless. I hope they will manage to settle this conflict in a peaceful way.

i don't share your beliefs,but i would like the most to settle this in peaceful way...they are just following Kosovo and Metohija way,nothing else,and nobody will convince them they don't have same rights as Albanians

[drgs]

Originally Posted by Leland Gaunt

Russian citizen doesn't equal being Russian by ethnicity. Most of them are just russified Ossetians. But it's still getting quite disturbing nonetheless. I hope they will manage to settle this conflict in a peaceful way.

I ment to say exactly what I said -- russian passports