Statements

According to lawyers from the Legal Aid Network, most of the individuals detained on December 2, 2024, have been brutally beaten. Some detainees are currently in medical facilities. They have bruises all over their bodies and injuries to the facial area, including fractures of the nose and jaw. All hospitalized individuals have suffered concussions, multiple contusions, and hematomas, and are struggling to move and speak.

 

According to the detainees, they were subjected to violence by law enforcement officers both during and after their arrest. In the police vans, they were mercilessly beaten by at least six special forces officers who took turns assaulting them. The officers coordinated with one another, even discussing whether to break the detainees’ arms or legs. Their supervisor instructed them to strike detainees in the liver and back of the head. While beating them, officers spat on the detainees, verbally abused them, and shouted derogatory remarks, including:

• “We’ll shove a baton up your ass.”
• “Did you like Gvaramia and Khazaradze?”
• “You European, you like it up the **s, don’t you? We’ll fix you with a baton.”

 

After prolonged and continuous beatings, the van was covered in blood. One victim’s raincoat was soaked in blood. An older man, appearing to oversee the torture, ensured that the detainees weren’t fatally injured. Upon exiting the van, the detainees were forced to pass through a corridor of special forces officers, who kicked them in the face and back on their way to the patrol cars.

 

The special forces stripped detainees of their shoes, leaving many barefoot upon arrival at medical facilities. They also confiscated their mobile phones and demanded that they unlock them.

 

We strongly condemn this inhumane and degrading treatment and demand an immediate investigation into every criminal act committed against these individuals.