The leader of the For Georgia party, Giorgi Gakharia, has held a briefing addressing the recent attack on him in Batumi. Gakharia has directly linked the incident to Bidzina Ivanishvili, accusing the Georgian Dream founder of orchestrating the assault and claiming that he and his family have been subjected to threats for a long time.
“On January 15 of this year, a premeditated and organized violent attack was carried out through an ambush against me – and, effectively, against my team as well. It was an act of political revenge orchestrated and masterminded by Bidzina Ivanishvili.
For a long time now, Ivanishvili has been threatening me and my family in various ways, including publicly. Many of you have seen this yourselves. But today, I want to make it absolutely clear: I am not focused on the executors of this violent attack – I am focused solely on the mastermind behind it. Ivanishvili is the chief architect of repressions in our country, targeting ordinary Georgian citizens, our youth, and the very future of our nation. He is not just a political opponent; he is the root of the evil gripping Georgia today.
We must all clearly understand that, for Ivanishvili – who has taken our country hostage – money and power are his ultimate values. It is our duty to do everything to ensure he loses both.
I promise you that I will stand with you on the frontlines of this fight every single day!
Now, regarding the day of the attack: As you know, I was in Batumi, attending the court hearing of our party members. When I returned to the Sheraton Hotel, I was met by a group of individuals divided into several clusters. Just as I was entering the hotel, they were already shouting insults and obscenities, and essentially initiating their attack. It was a coordinated and organized effort, and of course, I responded accordingly.
At the same time, it became clear that one individual was filming everything with their phone. The hotel lobby had already been cleared of people, including hotel staff. Once I entered the hotel, the attackers deliberately moved in a way to ensure I noticed they were armed.
After I reacted to their attack – I served them with the remnants of my coffee in a paper cup – they physically assaulted me as a group. According to the doctors, I lost consciousness and remained unconscious until the paramedics helped me regain it. I want to thank the paramedics for their assistance.
Why am I recounting all this? Because the way the investigation is being conducted today and the behavior of certain propaganda television channels make it evident that they have no intention of investigating this case fairly. Several factors point to this:
First, the attackers were filming everything, and the footage ended up in the possession of a single specific television channel (meaning TV Imedi). Additionally, it is a fact that surveillance camera recordings disappeared, and immense pressure was exerted on the management of the Sheraton Hotel to ensure these video materials were destroyed.
Despite all this, we have established a special investigative group that will thoroughly determine who participated in this attack, how it was organized, who planned it, and who ordered it. In short, we will uncover everything.
In conclusion, I want to tell you that despite all of this, this ridiculous attempt to intimidate and neutralize me will be met with the following response: I promise each and every Georgian citizen that I will be on the frontlines in the fight against terror and evil. I will do everything, and we will prevail.
After Bidzina Ivanishvili has already lost his reputation, his public face, and the little trust he had left, I will do everything to ensure he loses what he values the most – money and power.
This is my promise to every citizen of Georgia, and you can trust that I will fulfill it!”, Gakharia stated.
Related story: Gakharia: I treated GD representatives with a paper cup and leftover coffee, after which they attacked me in a group
