MOSCOW, December 7 (Itar-Tass) — High tensions mounted in South Ossetia, where Alla Dzhioyeva that refused to accept the Supreme Court ruling to annul the results of the presidential elections declared herself as president. On Tuesday, the assassination attempt was made on Prosecutor General Taimuraz Khugayev, which caused the arrest of two oppositionists. On the same day the republican Supreme Court turned down a plea from the opposition leaders to cancel the election results that outlawed further actions of the opposition. However, the opposition leaders did not cancel their decision to inaugurate Alla Dzhioyeva on December 10. The border with North Ossetia was closed.
The blast went off at 5 a.m. in Tskhinval, the Kommersant reported. The bandits have made an antitank grenade launcher shot to the window of the second floor in the flat, where Prosecutor General Taimuraz Khugayev lives with his wife and two children. According to him, the grenade launcher projectile scratched on the windowsill, changed the trajectory and blasted in the room. But not for this accident the explosion would go off in the bedroom.
Alla Dzhioyeva claimed that her supporters have no connection to the terrorist act and it can be beneficial only to the authorities to launch the persecution of the opposition. “The attack on the general prosecutor is surely not in the interests of Dzhioyeva,” a source in the South Ossetia State Security Committee confirmed to the newspaper. “But our authorities do not need this either. It is quite probable that the third force is behind this. Do not forget that the border with Georgia is near and is quite transparent with my paths across it. The longer this conflict lasts in our republic, the more provocations will be,” the source said. To a question why Georgia may attempt to kill the South Ossetian general prosecutor the source said, “All realized that the confrontation between the opposition and the authorities escalated so high tensions that one shot is enough to unleash a civil war.” Meanwhile, if the authorities start to press on Dzhioyeva’s supporters and on her in particular this will result in the growth of massive protests.
Eduard Kokoity’s resignation and the walkout of the opposition from the square is called as the only reasonable solution to the current situation in Tskhinval more and more frequently. Alla Dzhioyeva stated on Tuesday that the authorities do not leave other ways to her to protect the right of people to the choice, except for seeking political asylum in Russia for her and her supporters. However, the opposition will not be likely permitted to emigrate in Russia. It became clear on Tuesday that the border with North Ossetia is closed. The official reason for the border closure is an avalanche threat. The oppositionists did not believe in this explanation, claiming that the authorities in South Ossetia just want to settle scores with the protesters, preventing them from going to Russia.
If the border is not opened by Wednesday morning, this confirms the opposition concerns. Moreover, Moscow actually alienated from the South Ossetian standoff. On Tuesday, President Dmitry Medvedev stated that actually Russia did not participate in the negotiations with the opposition in South Ossetia and just helped to establish the dialogue between the parties to the conflict – the authorities and the opposition should come to terms themselves.
“The court verdict is final and cannot be reviewed,” the Izvestia quoted Eduard Kokoity as saying. “New presidential elections are to be held on March 25 as it was set earlier,” he said. It is clear from Kokoity’s statement that he intends to stay at the helm of the country until the spring and does not take seriously the pledge of Dzhioyeva’s supporters to hold her inauguration next Saturday. Dzhioyeva is speaking about upcoming inauguration without her previous enthusiasm.
Dzhioyeva stated that it becomes more and more dangerous for her and her supporters to stay in the republic. They are experiencing a higher pressure from the authorities. The arrest of Dzhioyeva’s two supporters – David Dzhioyev and Roman Besayev confirmed Dzhioyeva’s words. They are suspected of the assassination attempt on the general prosecutor. Dzhioyeva’s election headquarters believes that the detainees are not connected with the attack on Khugayev’s flat and their arrest is just the attempt to intimidate the protesters.