Thousands in Georgia join human chains in anti-government protests
Thousands of demonstrators formed human chains in cities across Georgia on Saturday, the day before the inauguration of the country's new pro-Russia president, who opponents say was elected via an "illegitimate" vote in November.
Thousands of Georgians formed human chains across the country on Saturday, in support of the European Union membership, marking second month of their daily pro-Europe rallies.
Mass street protests gripped Georgia since November 28, when the ruling Georgian Dream party's increasingly authoritarian government said it will not seek the opening of EU accession talks until 2028.
The protest came a day before a controversial inauguration of Georgian Dream loyalist Mikheil Kavelashvili as the country's new president, after his election was declared "illegitimate" by the current leader Salome Zurabishvili and the pro-Western opposition.
On Saturday afternoon, thousands of demonstrators, waving Georgian and EU flags, lined the Mtkvari River embankment and several bridges in the capital, Tbilisi, forming a kilometres-long human chain, an AFP reporter saw.
"I Want to Hold Your Hand," a hit song by the English rock band the Beatles, echoed from speakers mounted on a car as it drove along the human chain.
Zurabishvili -- at loggerheads with the ruling party -- has joined the demonstrators at Tbilisi's Dry Bridge.
On the Metekhi Bridge in Tbilisi's historic district, protesters displayed a banner reading "Freedom for political prisoners."
Read more on FRANCE 24 English
Read also:
Dozens arrested in Georgia crackdown on pro-EU protests
Georgian lawmakers elect far-right ruling party loyalist Mikheil Kavelashvili as president
