Arrest warrants will be sent to all relevant states to ensure the arrest of these individuals - Prosecutor's Office on the August War war criminals

The Georgian Prosecutor's Office has issued a statement regarding the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

According to the prosecutor's office, the arrest warrants for three former high-ranking South Ossetian officials are linked to wartime incarceration of ethnic Georgians, torture and ill-treatment, hostage-taking and subsequent extradition, which constitutes a war crime.

According to prosecutors, the investigation by prosecutors at the International Criminal Court in The Hague also revealed the role of Major General Vyacheslav Borisov, deputy chief of staff of the Russian Armed Forces, in the perpetration of war crimes, although Borisov is now dead.

Prosecutors say arrest warrants will be sent to all relevant states to ensure that these individuals are arrested and brought before the International Criminal Court.

"Georgia has had another great success in the international courts in the August 2008 war case. In particular, following the ruling of the Strasbourg Court of 21 January 2021 that the Russian Federation had violated several articles of the European Convention on Human Rights, the Court's Investigative Chamber issued arrest warrants for three former high-ranking South Ossetian officials.

Arrest warrants were issued for Mikhail Mindzaev, Hamlet Guchmazov and David Sanakoev. Mindzaev was the de facto interior minister in Tskhinvali from 2005 to 2008, Guchmazov was the de facto interior minister during the 2008 war, and David Sanakoev was then the de facto human rights commissioner in Tskhinvali.

The arrest warrants issued by The Hague Tribunal concern the illegal deprivation of liberty, torture and ill-treatment of ethnic Georgians during the August 2008 war, hostage-taking and subsequent extradition. All of those acts constituted grave war crimes. The Court stresses that these crimes were committed in the context of the occupation by the Russian Federation. The investigation of the Prosecutor's Office also revealed the role of Major General Vyacheslav Borisov, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, in the perpetration of the alleged crimes, although he is deceased at present.

The arrest warrants issued by the Pre-Trial Chamber will be sent to all the States concerned to ensure that the persons are apprehended and brought before the International Criminal Court.

In this case, the Office of the Prosecutor General of Georgia, together with other agencies, actively sought evidence in support of Georgia's position before the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Hundreds of pieces of evidence were submitted to The Hague Tribunal, supported by strong legal arguments received by the Georgian side during the investigation. The Prosecutor General's Office of Georgia, along with other agencies, is making a significant contribution to the process of collecting the aforementioned evidence and elaborating the state position," reads the statement issued by the Prosecutor's Office.