29 June 2007, 21:29
International monitoring group confirms shelling of South Ossetia
On June 29, the international monitoring group (comprising military observers from the Russian, Ossetian and Georgian parties and military monitoring officers of the OSCE Mission in Georgia) conducted their monitoring and confirmed the statement of South Ossetia about shelling of its territory from the positions of armed formations under President Saakashvili's control.
Earlier, the senior military commander of the Georgian battalion in the Mixed Peacekeeping Forces (MPKF) Mamuka Kurashvili and other Georgian officials denied the facts of bombardments of inhabited quarters of the city of Tskhinval, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.
This morning, the city of Tskhinval, the capital of South Ossetia, was bombarded by mine throwers and grenade launchers, which resulted is one destroyed house and an injured local resident.
The "Caucasian Knot" has informed earlier that yesterday morning, that is, on June 28, Georgian special agents opened aiming fire on a militia post in the northern suburb of Tskhinval. As a result of the bombardment two persons were heavily wounded, one of them subsequently died.
Yesterday, the Georgian party reported the shelling of the Georgian Tamarasheni village. The bombardment has not caused any human casualties or any serious damage.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of South Ossetia, the Georgian special units continue equipping fortification constructions in the conflict zone.
Another violation by Georgia of earlier signed international agreements on inadmissibility of aircraft flights over the territory of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone was registered by military observers of the Mixed Peacekeeping Forces in South Ossetia, the "Caucasian Knot" reports.
Author: Georgiy Vaneyev, CK correspondent