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Georgia: ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili imprisoned "at risk of dying", warn his doctors and lawyers

2023-02-03T13:00:27.829Z


Imprisoned Georgian opponent and ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili, who is serving a prison sentence in hospital, "risks dying" due to...


Imprisoned Georgian opponent and ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili, who is serving a prison sentence in hospital, "

risks dying

" due to severe weight loss, his doctors and lawyers warned on Friday (February 3rd).

The 55-year-old ex-leader was taken to hospital last year after an initial 50-day hunger strike to protest his imprisonment for "

abuse of power

", which human rights NGOs humans had denounced as politically motivated.

Critical weight loss

"

Saakashvili's weight has dropped from 115 to 68 kilos

" since his arrest in October 2021, his lawyer Dito Sadzaglichvili told AFP, stressing: "

It is weight loss that threatens his life

".

Read alsoGeorgia rules out releasing ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili

According to Dr. Mariam Jichkariani, who examined the former president, Mr. “

Saakashvili suffers from cachexia

”, a state of extreme weakness and weight loss linked to malnutrition.

"

In the absence of a proper diagnosis of his condition and adequate medical assistance, he is at risk of dying

," she told AFP.

“This man is hurting himself”

For his part, the Georgian Minister of Justice, Rati Bregadze, insisted that Mikheil Saakashvili was receiving all the necessary care.

This man is hurting himself

” by refusing to eat normally, he said, accusing the ex-president of pursuing “

a simple objective of obtaining his release

”.

Words that were described as a "

cynical lie

" by Dito Sadzaglichvili.

Mikheil “

Saakashvili does not reject food, he cannot eat

,” he assured.

European support

Mikheil Saakacvhili led Georgia, the former Soviet republic of the Caucasus, from 2004 to 2013, before going into exile for eight years.

During his exile, Mikheil Saakashvili notably lived in Ukraine, a country whose nationality he obtained and where he held political responsibilities.

On Thursday February 2, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused the Georgian authorities of "

slowly killing

" Mikheil Saakashvili. "

I call on the world to help save Mikheil's life and prevent his execution

", he wrote on Twitter .

The Council of Europe called last year for his release and said it considered him a "

political prisoner

".

The NGO Amnesty International described the treatment of Mikheil Saakashvili as "

apparent political revenge

".

Returning to Georgia illegally before local elections in early October 2021, Mikheil Saakashvili was immediately arrested to serve a six-year prison sentence for "

abuse of power

", pronounced in absentia in 2018.

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2023-02-03

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