Signs of Russian Pull Back from Gori Reported

Russian troops have removed two of its checkpoints from the town of Gori last night, a journalist of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Georgian service reported from the town early on Wednesday morning.

One of the checkpoints was removed from the bridge over Mtkvari river in the south of Gori and another one – from the bridge over the Liakhvi river in the west of the town, according to this report. It also said two checkpoints remained at the northern entrance of Gori.

RFE/RL Georgian Service also reported quoting a governor of Shida Kartli (Gori is the main town of the region), Lado Vardzelashvili, that although it was not “a full withdrawal,” the Russian troops were “in the regime of pull out.”

Meanwhile, local residents of nearby areas to the military base in Osiauri said they had heard a powerful explosion on Wednesday morning coming from the base. Relatively minor explosions, they say, were also heard last night. The Georgian officials said that the Russian forces were destroying the infrastructure at the base. Osiauri is close to the town of Khashuri, in the west from Gori.

Civil.Ge learnt from two separate sources, which are in the areas close to the reported place, that the Russian forces were seen at the entrance of the village of Perevi, but the troops did not entered the village itself. There is road in the area, which leads from the Georgia proper into the breakaway region’s Java district in the area. One of the sources said Russian troops were seen digging in trenches in the area at the administrative border.