The government has missed the chance to exchange these occupants for our captives - Davit Katsarava

The tense situation in the conflict zone and the armed occupiers, who invaded the territory controlled by the Georgian law enforcers yesterday and entered the village of Khurvaleti, were detained by the Georgian police, but were soon released.

Davit Katsarava, the founder of the anti-occupation movement "Strength is in Unity", says that the Georgian government could have exchanged the occupiers for Georgian captives, but they did not use this chance.

Yesterday's incident is shameful, first and foremost for our government, because after the capture of the occupiers, which we all welcomed, unfortunately, they were released and transferred to the occupation regime. The authorities did not use the chance to exchange these occupiers for our citizens who have been held captive by the occupation regime for years. It was reaffirmed yesterday that the occupation regime is exercising effective control not only over its own territory, we are talking about Russia in the first place. Effective control is already being exercised in the non-occupied part as well, - said Davit Katsarava.

The State Security Service says that a rather serious incident was prevented and Russian soldiers who tried to kidnap a Georgian citizen were neutralized.