Several Georgian television channels on Monday broadcast images of ex-president Mikheïl Saakashvili showing him to be very thin during a court hearing, heightening concerns about his state of health.
During the hearing, which was done by videoconference, Mr. Saakashvili appeared emaciated. Lifting his T-shirt, the 55-year-old former leader revealed his torso, with ribs visible and a hollowed-out stomach, according to the images published.
“An absolutely innocent man is being kept in detention,” said the former president, who is on trial for “abuse of power,” a charge he rejects. His doctors claim that Mr Saakashvili, who weighed 115 kilos before his arrest, has lost some 60 kilos in prison and is suffering from heavy metal poisoning, anorexia and cachexia.
Mikheïl Saakachvili, who led Georgia from 2004 to 2013 before spending eight years in exile abroad, was arrested on his return to the country in 2021. He is now the main opposition figure in the country.
After a 50-day hunger strike last year, he was hospitalised and his rare public appearances in court revealed a clear and visible deterioration in his health.
On Monday, despite his increasing thinness, he showed his fighting spirit in court.
“Putting me in prison won’t break me. I’m going to take an active part in Georgian politics,” he said.
The Georgian authorities claim that Mr Saakashvili is receiving all the medical treatment he needs in the prison hospital where he remains. However, several doctors who have examined Mr Saakashvili in recent months, including American specialists, have expressed concern about his deteriorating state of health.
Last year, the Council of Europe called forhis release and said it considered him to be a “political prisoner.” the NGO Amnesty International has described Mr Saakashvili’s treatment as “apparent political revenge.”
