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The opposition party, the Coalition for Change, has announced that its leader, Nika Gvaramija, has been detained by the police.
The police in Georgia have searched the offices of several opposition parties, trying to stop the wave of protests against the decision of the ruling party Georgian Dream to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union.
Thousands of people are gathered in the capital Tbilisi, with police firing tear gas and water cannons to disperse crowds for six consecutive nights. Some protesters have pelted police with fireworks and set up barricades in the city center.
On Wednesday, the opposition party, the Coalition for Change, announced that its leader, Nika Gwaramia, had been detained by the police. The party posted a video on X of Gwaramiya being carried down by his arms and legs by some men.
The police also searched the offices of the Youth Organization of the opposition party United National Movement (UNM), one of the leaders of the party, Levan Habeishvili, told reporters.
In a statement, UNM accused the Georgian government of “initiating all kinds of terror and repression against opponents.”
The Interpress news agency reported that the police detained two members of another opposition party, Strong Georgia.
Police beat and arrested the leader of the liberal opposition party Akhali and raided the party’s offices in Droa, according to images broadcast on local television.
The raids came after Prime Minister Irakli Kobahidze vowed to crack down on so-called “radical” political forces he accused of orchestrating the protests.
“It is clear to everyone that these violent actions are fully coordinated by the radical opposition. … No one will escape responsibility, including politicians hiding in their offices,” he said.
Demonstrators gather again
Further protests were planned for Wednesday evening.
Al Jazeera’s Dmitry Medvedenko, speaking from Tbilisi, says police were deployed outside the parliament building to prevent protesters from approaching. “The agitation is growing here at Parliament,” he said.
“This is the seventh night of protests here in Tbilisi. People we have spoken to have said that the arrest of the opposition leader (Gvaramia) will not stop them from coming here night after night.
Earlier, pro-EU President Salome Zurabishvili accused Georgian Dream of “closing down shops selling gas masks, goggles and helmets, leaving peaceful protesters deprived of basic protection”.
Early Wednesday, police used tear gas and water cannon to clear demonstrators from Tbilisi’s main avenue near the parliament building, then chased the refugees across the city and made arrests.
The Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs announced that “11 protesters, three journalists and one police officer” were taken to hospitals with injuries.
“Dozens of individuals, including members of the media and law enforcement officers, were treated at the scene,” the statement said.
More than 300 protesters have been arrested and more than 100 people have been treated for injuries since the demonstrations broke out on Thursday.
Demonstrators accuse the government of abandoning Georgia’s bid to join the EU, which is enshrined in its constitution and supported by about 80 percent of the population, according to polls.
Georgia’s state attorney general, a former opposition politician, on Tuesday accused police of severely mistreating people detained during demonstrations, which he said amounted to torture.
