Georgian ‘rebel minister’ accuses president of buying media
Published 07 March, 2008, 06:55
Georgia's former defence minister and opposition party leader Irakly Okruashvili has revealed fresh accusations against his former ally Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili.
In an interview with a Georgian TV channel he said Saakashvili used middlemen to acquire stakes in some of the country's major companies, such as media company Rustavi-2 and mobile phone operator Geocell.
Irakly Okruashvili is now in France waiting for a court to decide whether to extradite him to Georgia or grant him political asylum.
Georgian prosecutors have filed a number of charges against him, including the abuse of office and money laundering.
Okruashvili says the charges are fabricated and claims the case is political rather than judicial.
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