South Ossetia releases Georgian policemen

South Ossetia will release the Georgian policemen who were arrested in the South Ossetian village of Vanati yesterday.

Georgy Khaindrava, Georgia's state minister for separatist conflicts, is currently in Tskhinvali, South Ossetia's capital, as he is expected to be present at the release of the Georgian policemen who were detained by a South Ossetian armed unit on Thursday morning.

The released policemen will be taken to the Georgian village of Ergneti in the Tsinkhvali district (the name for the self-proclaimed Republic of South Ossetia used by Georgia) where they will be met by Georgian Interior Ministry officers and relations.

The Tskhinvali authorities demand that the detainees confirm in the written form that they did not undergo tortures in prison.

Georgia reports that 50 policemen were detained yesterday.

However, Irina Gagloyeva, head of South Ossetia's Information and Press Committee, told RIA Novosti over the phone that 38 men had been detained.

Ms Gagloyeva confirmed that the hand-over of the policemen to Georgia had already begun.

The Georgian authorities said an up to 200-men strong unit entered Vanati and disarmed the Georgian peacekeepers deployed there, reports Novosti-Georgia agency.

South Ossetia offered a different version saying law enforcers had conducted an operation to trace and detain individuals staying in South Ossetia without identification documents.