Georgian priest suspected of planning to kill 'high-ranking cleric'
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 13 February 2017 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Georgian priest suspected of planning to kill 'high-ranking cleric', 13 February 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5975a52c6.html [accessed 5 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
February 13, 2017
Patriarch Ilia II has been beset by health problems in recent years (file photo)
TBILISI – Authorities in Tbilisi have arrested an archpriest of the Georgian Orthodox Church on suspicion of planning to "murder a high-ranking cleric," shaking the South Caucasus country's dominant church as its 84-year-old leader underwent medical treatment in Germany.
Chief Prosecutor Irakli Shotadze said on February 13 that the head of the Georgian Patriarchate's Property Management Service, Archpriest Giorgi Mamaladze, had been arrested on February 10 as he boarded a plane to Berlin, where Patriarch Ilia II was awaiting a gallbladder operation.
Shotadze said cyanide was found in Mamaladze's luggage.
He refused to name Mamaladze's alleged target, but said that the chief of the Special Service for State Guards, Anzor Chubinidze, had been sent to Berlin "to protect the security of the Georgian patriarch."
Ilia, 84, has led the Church since 1977 and wields significant influence on social and political life in the predominantly Orthodox Christian former Soviet republic of 4.9 million.
The patriarch, who has suffered health problems in recent years, underwent successful gallbladder surgery in Berlin on February 13, church officials said.
With reporting by civil.ge, AP, and AFP
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
