TBILISI. Aug 23 (Interfax-AVN) - Georgian special services have confirmation of reports that rebel groups have left the Pankisi Gorge ahead of a large-scale anti-terrorist operation planned for the next few days, spokesman for the Georgian Security Ministry Nika Laliashvili said on a live program of Rustavi-2 television on Thursday night.
He said the rebel group discovered in the Tianeti district does not number more than several dozen men. "The situation is fully controlled by the ministry," he said.
Quoting local shepherds, Rustavi-2 reported that on Thursday morning that a large group of Chechen rebels numbering up to 500 men had left its positions and was headed for the Chechen section of the Russian-Georgian border. The group was led by Ruslan Gelayev, who had been in the Tianeti district for two days
Rustavi-2 cameraman filmed the place where the Chechen rebels had camped, showing several open cans, litter and a partly burned military map of Georgia.
A source in Georgian law enforcement told Interfax that Interior Ministry troops will be sent to the Pankisi Gorge in a matter of days. In addition to six existing roadblocks, eight to ten more are to be put up there.
At a Thursday meeting in the village of Magraani in the Akhmeta district, Interior Ministry officials told elders of the Pankisi Gorge about the purpose of the planned operation, and the elders promised the all-round support of the local population for the authorities.