3 UN officials and their interpreter kidnapped from Kodori Gorge

The Georgian Defence Ministry has confirmed that three UN officials and their interpreter were kidnapped from the Kodori Gorge on Thursday.

According to Vissarion Kvitsiani, who heads the Kodori Operations Department at the Georgian Defence Ministry, the mixed patrol consisting of Russian peacekeepers and UN officials was attacked nearby Gentsvishi, a village in the Kodori Gorge /in Georgian jurisdiction/. The gorge is situated in the zone of the conflict between Georgia and Abkhazia, a self-proclaimed republic on the Georgian territory.

According to Kvitsiani, four Russian peacekeepers accompanying the UN officials were disarmed and released.

The administration of the Kodori Gorge has launched a search for the UN employees.