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Georgia's leader, Irakli Kobakhidze, has unveiled a broad crackdown on political opposition, alleging protesters who tried to breach the presidential palace of aiming to overthrow his government and pointing the finger at the EU for meddling in the country's internal matters.

Kobakhidze made these allegations just a day following demonstrators tried to enter the presidential palace during local elections. Riot police halted their advance by employing pepper spray and water jets.

"Not a single person will escape responsibility. This encompasses political accountability," Kobakhidze was reported to state.

Officers arrested at least several protesters, including representatives of the United National Movement and the opera singer turned activist Paata Burchuladze.

Local media reported the ministry of health as stating that twenty-one police officers and 6 protesters had been injured in confrontations in the heart of the capital.

Context of the Political Unrest

The South Caucasus country has been in upheaval since the prime minister's ruling Georgian Dream party claimed victory in the previous year's general election, which the European-leaning opposition claims was rigged. From that point, Georgia's negotiations on entering the bloc have been halted.

The premier stated that up to seven thousand people attended the weekend's opposition rally but their "attempt to topple the constitutional order" had been thwarted despite what he called support from the European Union.

"Several people have been detained – primarily the organisers of the attempted coup," he informed the press, stating that the primary opposition group "will no longer be allowed from operating in the nation's political scene."

Protest Movement Calls and Government Response

Opposition figures had urged a "peaceful revolution" against GD, which they allege of being pro-Russian and authoritarian. The political group has been in power since 2012.

A large crowd of protesters assembled in the center of the city, waving national and European flags, after an extended period of Kremlin-style raids on free press, restrictions on civil society and the arrest of many of critics and activists.

Kobakhidze accused the European Union's representative to the country, Paweł Herczyński, of interference. "You know that specific people from overseas have even expressed direct support for these actions, for the declared effort to disrupt the legal government," he said, adding that the ambassador "holds particular accountability in this situation."

"The ambassador should come out, dissociate himself and strictly condemn everything that is happening on the city's avenues," stated the prime minister.

European Union Response and Ongoing Geopolitical Strain

In July, the European External Action Service rejected what it termed "false information and baseless accusations" about the Union's supposed involvement in Georgia.

The pro-western opposition have been organizing demonstrations since the previous autumn, when GD won a parliamentary election that its critics say was marred by fraud. The party has rejected allegations of electoral manipulation.

Georgia has the objective of joining the European Union written into its constitution and has long been among the most pro-western of the former Soviet republics. Its ties with the Western nations have been under pressure since Moscow's military offensive of its neighbor in 2022.

Georgian Dream is controlled by its founder, Bidzina Ivanishvili, the country's richest man and a ex-leader, and denies it is aligned with Russia. It says it aims to enter the European Union while maintaining stability with Moscow.