Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Guy Buys $123 Safe on eBay, Finds $26,000 Inside Seller tries to get half the cash back, fails »

Russia Opens Second Front in Georgia

By the Associated Press

Posted Aug 11, 2008 11:57 AM CDT
Email

(AP) – Russia opened a second front of fighting in Georgia today, sending armored vehicles beyond two breakaway provinces and seizing a military base and police stations in the country's west, officials told the AP. Meanwhile, the US State Department evacuated more than 170 American civilians to Armenia. The new forays into Georgia appeared to show Russian determination to subdue Georgia, which has been pressing for NATO membership

The latest developments indicate that Russian troops have invaded Georgia proper while most Georgian forces are locked up in fighting around South Ossetia. The West has sharply criticized Russia's military response to Georgia's attack on South Ossetia as disproportionate. "We want to see the Russians stand down," a deputy State Department spokesman told reporters in Washington.

A Georgian man consoles a woman during fighting this week.
A Georgian man consoles a woman during fighting this week.   (SERGEI GRITS)
Bodyguards escort Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, third from left, wearing a protective vest, to shelter under the threat of Russian air attack in Gori, Georgia, Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.
Bodyguards escort Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, third from left, wearing a protective vest, to shelter under the threat of Russian air attack in Gori, Georgia, Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.   (SERGEI GRITS)
Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili speaks during a news conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, Aug. 11, 2008. Saakashvili said Moscow was trying to overthrow his government as Russian troops pushed into two separatist regions, but Moscow said it had no intention of invading.
Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili speaks during a news conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, Aug. 11, 2008. Saakashvili said Moscow was trying to overthrow his government as Russian troops pushed into...   (AP Photo/Irakli Gedenidze, Pool)
Georgian soldiers sit atop armored vehicles as they make their way on a street in Gori, Georgia, near the breakaway province of South Ossetia, Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.
Georgian soldiers sit atop armored vehicles as they make their way on a street in Gori, Georgia, near the breakaway province of South Ossetia, Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.   (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

Copyright 2012 Newser, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. AP contributed to this report.

 
Russia • State Department • Georgia • invasion • South Ossetia

More Newser Stories

EU Report: Georgia Started War

Putin: US Sparked Georgia War

Russia-Georgia Conflict Was Waiting to Happen

Russia Takes Breakaway Capital in Georgian Fighting

Russia, Georgia Fund Dueling War Movies
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne