Georgian man jailed for fighting alongside IS militants in Syria
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 10 August 2016 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Georgian man jailed for fighting alongside IS militants in Syria, 10 August 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/57db99d713.html [accessed 19 May 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. |
August 10, 2016
By RFE/RL's Georgian Service
TBILISI – A court in Tbilisi has sentenced a Georgian citizen to 12 years in jail on charges of fighting alongside Islamic State militants in Syria.
The Tbilisi City Court on August 9 found Davit Borchashvili guilty of being a member of a terrorist organization and participating in a terrorist organization's activities. He was sentenced the same day.
Borchashvili, a native of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge, was arrested in November after being deported from Turkey.
The Pankisi Gorge borders Russia's Chechnya region and is home to Muslims with ethnic ties to Chechens.
Pankisi Gorge native Tarkhan Batirashvili, known as Umar al-Shishani, was a top IS commander in Syria.
The so-called Islamic State said in July that Batirashvili was killed during a battle in the town of Al-Shirqat in northern Iraq.
Georgian authorities have said that some 100 Georgian citizens have joined IS militants in Syria and Iraq.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
