Georgian Defence Minister will personally participate in search for kidnapped UN observers

After failed attempts to find traces of UN observers kidnapped on June 5 in the Kodori Gorge in Georgia the Georgian defence minister David Tevzadze decided to personally participate in the special operation. He already arrived there and manages operative and search operations.

On Friday night Emzar Kvitsiani, plenipotentiary representative of the Georgian President stated that special units of the Defence ministry, State security ministry and Georgian frontier forces together with cynologists found traces of the kidnapped UN observers. Kvitsiani expected them being liberated by that night. But later the failed operation was explained by the fact that kidnappers got accomplices in the Kodori gorge from where they obtained information on movements of special forces.

For three days UN military observers Klaus Ott and Gerbert Bawer from Germany, Henrick Sorenssen from Denmark and Lasha Chikashua , a Georgian interpreter have been kept prisoners by an unknown criminal grouping. By now the kidnappers put forward no demands.