Dubai Telegraph - Georgia jailed ex-leader claims doctors trying to 'kill' him

EUR -
AED 3.896782
AFN 71.970942
ALL 98.005181
AMD 410.245014
ANG 1.910392
AOA 969.150107
ARS 1058.535585
AUD 1.625105
AWG 1.911243
AZN 1.804916
BAM 1.952226
BBD 2.140282
BDT 126.668083
BGN 1.954125
BHD 0.39988
BIF 3130.34894
BMD 1.060918
BND 1.418709
BOB 7.350404
BRL 6.098794
BSD 1.060009
BTN 89.509273
BWP 14.421276
BYN 3.468912
BYR 20793.984215
BZD 2.136589
CAD 1.480871
CDF 3043.772641
CHF 0.937002
CLF 0.037907
CLP 1045.969635
CNY 7.661842
COP 4706.760764
CRC 542.432423
CUC 1.060918
CUP 28.114315
CVE 110.062449
CZK 25.385671
DJF 188.763289
DKK 7.459582
DOP 63.876059
DZD 141.570939
EGP 52.207642
ETB 131.000325
FJD 2.400856
GBP 0.832847
GEL 2.906642
GHS 17.277204
GMD 75.853327
GNF 9135.746941
GTQ 8.190926
GYD 221.749817
HKD 8.252734
HNL 26.751282
HTG 139.425239
HUF 411.004238
IDR 16737.512871
ILS 3.989583
INR 89.539798
IQD 1388.583814
IRR 44669.934186
ISK 147.520817
JMD 168.439542
JOD 0.752299
JPY 164.527633
KES 137.06364
KGS 91.448653
KHR 4295.439124
KMF 488.419938
KRW 1493.349953
KWD 0.326234
KYD 0.883299
KZT 526.01683
LAK 23242.540542
LBP 94922.679318
LKR 309.967089
LRD 199.802298
LSL 19.152137
LTL 3.132613
LVL 0.641738
LYD 5.135839
MAD 10.515649
MDL 18.974154
MGA 4955.161109
MKD 61.501816
MMK 3445.818857
MOP 8.49301
MRU 42.123861
MUR 50.064526
MVR 16.402021
MWK 1837.721918
MXN 21.861851
MYR 4.72746
MZN 67.819132
NAD 19.151596
NGN 1778.681478
NIO 39.010598
NOK 11.769899
NPR 143.222523
NZD 1.790898
OMR 0.408483
PAB 1.059939
PEN 4.005911
PGK 4.258364
PHP 62.296049
PKR 294.599601
PLN 4.351472
PYG 8282.226373
QAR 3.864488
RON 4.975918
RSD 116.986352
RUB 103.700317
RWF 1454.705134
SAR 3.986063
SBD 8.859994
SCR 14.916358
SDG 638.142533
SEK 11.580918
SGD 1.420892
SLE 24.18896
SOS 605.819355
SRD 37.381452
STD 21958.851549
SVC 9.275193
SZL 19.142853
THB 36.855747
TJS 11.267165
TMT 3.713211
TND 3.332367
TOP 2.48477
TRY 36.47689
TTD 7.203151
TWD 34.468683
TZS 2825.997726
UAH 43.903187
UGX 3894.795581
USD 1.060918
UYU 44.68818
UZS 13571.98253
VES 47.606636
VND 26894.260197
XAF 654.789004
XCD 2.867183
XDR 0.798576
XOF 654.789004
XPF 119.331742
YER 264.990671
ZAR 19.19911
ZMK 9549.525686
ZMW 28.858523
ZWL 341.615022
  • RIO

    -1.4000

    61.2

    -2.29%

  • CMSC

    -0.1800

    24.54

    -0.73%

  • NGG

    -1.2400

    62.9

    -1.97%

  • RBGPF

    59.3400

    59.34

    +100%

  • RELX

    -1.2100

    46.59

    -2.6%

  • RYCEF

    -0.0500

    7.11

    -0.7%

  • BTI

    0.0900

    35.24

    +0.26%

  • GSK

    -0.8300

    35.52

    -2.34%

  • SCS

    0.0200

    13.67

    +0.15%

  • BCC

    -2.0100

    141.13

    -1.42%

  • VOD

    -0.8500

    8.47

    -10.04%

  • BP

    -0.7600

    28.16

    -2.7%

  • CMSD

    -0.2100

    24.75

    -0.85%

  • AZN

    0.4000

    65.19

    +0.61%

  • BCE

    -0.1600

    27.69

    -0.58%

  • JRI

    -0.3000

    13.22

    -2.27%

Georgia jailed ex-leader claims doctors trying to 'kill' him
Georgia jailed ex-leader claims doctors trying to 'kill' him / Photo: Vano SHLAMOV - AFP

Georgia jailed ex-leader claims doctors trying to 'kill' him

Georgia's jailed ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili on Wednesday accused state-appointed doctors of refusing to treat him and being part of an alleged conspiracy to "kill" him.

Text size:

His claims came after doctors told journalists earlier Wednesday that his health was seriously deteriorating due to drastic weight loss.

In a statement posted on Facebook, Saakashvili said that state-appointed doctors had "refused to treat my underlying conditions" including "the poisoning by heavy metals" and anorexia.

He accused Georgia's ruling party, pro-government media "and now the hospital" of being part of a "special operation to kill me, of which we are witnessing the final stage".

Once a jovial, larger-than-life personality, Saakashvili has become a shadow of his former self, his lawyers and doctors say. He has lost nearly 50 kilograms since his imprisonment in 2021.

The 55-year-old pro-Western reformer was arrested in 2021, days after secretly returning to the Caucasus country from exile.

He has been in hospital since last year after refusing food for 50 days to protest his detention, which rights groups say is politically motivated.

On Wednesday, the opposition politician's doctor, Tamar Davarashvili, told a news conference that Saakashvili could soon end up in intensive care.

"The patient's condition is becoming serious," she said.

"His weight and body mass are extremely low," she said, adding that the "next stage could be an intensive care unit".

She added that Saakashvili -- who weighed 115 kilogrammes when he was jailed in October, 2021 -- now weighs just 67 kilogrammes.

Davarashvili described him as weak and bedridden and said he suffered pain in his limbs.

A group of US-based doctors have said that Saakashvili is suffering from serious neurological, gastrointestinal and orthopaedic conditions.

They said the deterioration of his health was the result of "torture" in custody.

American toxicologist David Smith claimed in 2022 that tests had revealed Saakashvili had been exposed to poisoning by heavy metals while in custody.

- 'Litmus test' -

The Georgian doctors' news conference followed numerous calls from the West for the Black Sea country's government to release Saakashvili on humanitarian grounds.

Last week, the European Parliament passed a resolution demanding that the Georgian government release Saakashvili and allow him to receive medical treatment abroad.

"The way former President Mikheil Saakashvili is being treated is a litmus test of the Georgian government's commitment to European values," said the resolution supported by more than 570 MEPs.

The United States and European Union have expressed concern over Saakashvili's condition and urged Tbilisi to ensure his rights are protected.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Georgia of "slowly killing" Saakashvili and demanded his transfer to a Ukrainian or western clinic.

Polish leaders have made similar calls.

The Georgian government insists Saakashvili is being given adequate care and that his rights are being protected.

- 'Opposed to Putin' -

In early February, a court in Georgia rejected Saakashvili's bid to get his six-year sentence for alleged abuse of office deferred over poor health.

Saakashvili was convicted in absentia for abuse of office and sentenced to six years in prison in 2018.

His jailing has sparked the biggest anti-government protests Georgia has seen for decades, with tens of thousands taking to the streets.

Saakashvili came to power on the back of the peaceful Rose Revolution in 2003.

During his term as president between 2004 and 2013, he introduced sweeping political and economic reforms and forged closer ties with the West.

However, he infuriated Russian leader Vladimir Putin, his long-time nemesis, and Russia and Georgia fought a five-day war in 2008.

The Council of Europe has called for the politician's release, branding him a "political prisoner opposed to Putin".

Amnesty International has called his treatment "apparent political revenge".

A.El-Nayady--DT