TBILISI. Feb 12 (Interfax) - The Gurjaani District Court in Georgia has ruled to extend the pretrial custody term of David Kirkitadze, a leader of the former ruling party United National Movement.
Kirkitadze, who served as governor of the Kvemo Kartli region during Mikheil Saakashvili's presidency, was detained on charges of attacking a police officer during an opposition demonstration in the village of Velistsikhe, the Gurjaani region, on the day of President Salome Zourabichvili's inauguration ceremony on December 16, 2018.
The Georgian Interior Ministry circulated a video in which Kirkitadze tries to break into a police bus and hits a policeman in the face. If found guilty, Kirkitadze may be imprisoned for seven to eleven years.
Activists from opposition parties protested against the court ruling near the courthouse.
"Open lawlessness is cultivated in Georgia, and this ruling has been dictated to the court by tycoon Bidzina Ivanishvili and the authorities obeying him. David Kirkitadze is a political prisoner," Nika Melia, a leader of United National Movement, said at the protest rally.