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Abkhazia’s president ready to run again in election rerun

Under the law, he is to fulfil his duty in the next three months

Abkhazia's President Raul Khajimba Mikhail Metzel/ITASS

Abkhazia's President Raul Khajimba

© Mikhail Metzel/ITASS

SUKHUM, January 11. /TASS/. Abkhazia’s President Raul Khajimba is ready to run in a rerun of the country’s presidential election if it is set out, former Vice President Vitaly Gabniya said on Saturday.

On Friday, the country’s Supreme Court overturned the ruling of the country's Central Election Commission (CEC) on results of the presidential election and ruled to call repeat elections. Thus, the court board sustained opposition activist Alkhas Kvitsinia’s appeal against the ruling of the lower court that recognized the results of the presidential runoff election as lawful.

"The president is ready to run in the new election. Under the law, he is to fulfil his duty in the next three months," Gabniya said.

A political crisis erupted in Abkhazia on January 9 when protesters, who demanded resignation of President Raul Khajimba, stormed into the presidential administration building. The president convened an emergency session of the country’s Security Council and said after the session that a state of emergency could be declared in the country. At its emergency session, Abkhazia’s parliament passed a resolution calling on the president to step down.

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