Defence finds verdict on recruitment of residents of Pankisi Gorge too harsh

Four residents of the Pankisi Gorge of Georgia, convicted for recruiting militants and belonging to the terrorist "Islamic State" (IS), decided to appeal against the verdict of the Tbilisi City Court, said the advocate Gela Nikolaishvili. According to his story, the convicted Imam Ayuf Borchashvili had asked "money to build mosques" from the IS.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that today the Tbilisi City Court today sentenced four residents of the Pankisi Gorge of Georgia, including Imam Ayuf Borchashvili, to prison terms ranging from 10 to 14 years.

The advocate believes that prosecutors failed to provide evidence in favour of Imam Ayuf Borchashvili's recruiting of Georgian citizens into the IS. According to his version, his client had asked money from Tarkhan Batirashvili (also known as Abu Omar al-Shishani, one of IS leaders) "for building mosques and helping the Muslims living in Georgia."

The advocate has emphasized that "no gross violations of the Georgian Code of Criminal Procedure were admitted at the trial"; however, "some arguments of the prosecution can be regarded as an indirect pressure on the court."

"For example, at each court session the prosecution screened videos with atrocities committed by IS militants – cutting off heads, and torture. Although these clips could not prove any Borchashvili's participation in war crimes," Nikolaishvili said.

Earlier, Georgi Borchashvili, the key witness in the case, said that the defendants knew each other and were organizing sending people to Syria.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.