Georgia’s President Accuses BBC of Airing ‘Unverified Claims’ on Use of Chemical Agent in Protest Crackdown
Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili has criticized the BBC for broadcasting what he described as “completely unverified” allegations that Georgian authorities used a chemical agent to suppress anti-government protests last year, according to a report by the Georgian Public Broadcaster on Tuesday.
Kavelashvili said the BBC’s reporting “harms our country,” arguing that the broadcaster failed to verify claims featured in its recent investigation. He likened the situation to past disputes involving Western media outlets and former leaders, including US President Donald Trump and ex-Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili.
“The BBC, CNN and other outlets previously hired medical experts through lobbying firms to create a narrative that the Georgian government was poisoning Saakashvili,” he said, adding that pediatrician Konstantine Chakhunashvili — one of the experts appearing in the BBC report — now insists he “never discussed that substance.”
The president called for patience and a thorough investigation, urging law enforcement to determine who may be “behind these coordinated actions.”
Earlier Tuesday, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze also condemned the BBC report, saying the broadcaster was given “deliberately fabricated” information aimed at undermining Georgia’s national interests. He argued that any international sanctions based on such reporting “would hold no weight.”
Kobakhidze accused the BBC of acting like a “fake television outlet” by relying on information from members of the Chakhunashvili family and what he described as a “treacherous” Special Task Force representative. He maintained that authorities had answered all the BBC’s questions and reiterated that the chemical agent referenced in the report — known as “Camite,” a substance dating back to World War I — “was not used at all.”
A BBC article published Sunday alleged that Georgian authorities deployed “Camite” during demonstrations in November 2024. In response, the ruling Georgian Dream party announced it will pursue legal action against the BBC in international courts, claiming the broadcaster ignored the majority of the information provided by Georgian officials ahead of publication.
