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virtually the entire ethnic
Georgian population of the region: over 10,000 people were killed in the fighting. In September 1993, Gamsakhurdia took the opportunity to launch an armed uprising in western Georgia in an attempt to return to power. The Mkhedrioni played an important role in suppressing the uprising and were for a while given semi-official status as the "Georgian Rescue Corps". Russian intervention ensured Gamsakhurdia's defeat and on December 31 he reportedly committed suicide, though it has also been stated, and widely believed within Georgia, that he was murdered. Mkhedrioni forces were alleged in press reports to be responsible for his death, but they denied this.
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with
Chechen separatists and continues to be involved in criminal and paramilitary activities, including continued guerrilla attacks in Abkhazia. Jaba Ioseliani was released from prison in an amnesty in April 2000 and resumed his post as head of the Mkhedrioni, declaring his intention to run for president and participate in the
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In spite of its banning, the
Mkhedrioni continues to have a somewhat shadowy existence in Georgian politics. A number of members, led by Tornike Berishvili, recreated it in 1999 as an ostensibly political rather than paramilitary organisation. It has been claimed that the Mkhedrioni has had relations
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The
Mkhedrioni were subsequently given responsibility for rooting out "Zviadists" in western Georgia, which they did with a brutal efficiency that was widely criticised by foreign governments and international human rights organisations. Shevardnadze responded by gradually limiting the organisation's
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Despite
Gamsakhurdia and Ioseliani sharing a broadly similar nationalist outlook, the two men fell out badly shortly after Gamsakhurdia came to power in November 1990. In February 1991, Ioseliani was imprisoned without trial, along with many of his supporters, and the Mkhedrioni was banned. In August
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on August 29, 1995, which he blamed on a shadowy coalition of "mafia forces" including
Ioseliani and others. Other acts of political violence were also blamed on the Mkhedrioni. The organisation was outlawed and Ioseliani imprisoned, although many regarded the claim that it had been involved in the
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In 1993, worsening civil strife in
Abkhazia prompted the Mkhedrioni and National Guard to launch a joint operation in the region to root out separatists and Gamsakhurdia supporters. This resulted in a disastrous defeat for the pro-government forces, who were driven out of Abkhazia along with
572:, a former Soviet foreign minister, was brought in to provide a respectable face for the new government, but it remained dependent on the Mkhedrioni: even inside the parliament building, Mkhedrioni gunmen had a constant presence as "bodyguards" for Jaba Ioseliani, who was now a member of
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power. Although
Ioseliani remained head of the supposedly civilianised organisation, it continued to function as a private army. In early 1995, Shevardnadze ordered it to disarm, accusing it of deep involvement in organised crime. He narrowly escaped assassination in a
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occupiers. The group's name literally means "horsemen", but in
Georgian it has a meaning closer to "knights" (this alternative translation has occasionally been used). Each member of the organization would take an oath to defend Georgia's people, the
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resigned around the same time. Kitovani soon formed an anti-Gamsakhurdia alliance with Sigua and the imprisoned
Ioseliani. In December 1991, Kitovani's supporters released Ioseliani from jail and launched a violent
508:. The Mkhedrioni was one of a number of nationalist paramilitary groups established during this period as a counterbalance to similar paramilitary organisations set up by rival nationalists elsewhere in Georgia.
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of their rivals. They were highly visible, wearing what amounted to a uniform of jeans, sweaters and jackets, topped off by sunglasses (even worn indoors). Leaders wore
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suits bulging with guns, according to one author. Mkhedrioni relied on illegal sources of income (targeting gasoline supplies) and exploited connections with Moscow's
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in alliance with former Gamsakhurdia supporters. It was again refused registration by the government. Its leader Badri Zarandia was assassinated on January 8, 2003.
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When the Mkhedrioni failed to secure registration to stand in elections under its own name, it reconstituted itself in November 2002 as a political party called the
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against the Gamsakhurdia government in alliance with the Mkhedrioni. Intense gun battles took place in the streets of
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The Mkhedrioni played a crucial role in suppressing the remaining "Zviadists" after the downfall of Gamsakhurdia.
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The establishment of the Mkhedrioni took place as Georgia moved towards independence in the final years of the
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The Mkhedrioni's members gained an unpleasant reputation as heavily armed thugs who engaged in violent
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political party. However, failing to secure registration, it soon faded into obscurity.
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706:"Dzhaba Ioseliani, 76; Oft-Imprisoned Leader of Georgian Paramilitary Force"
662:, ed. Karen Dawisha, Bruce Parrott, p. 165. Cambridge University Press, 1997
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708:. Associated Press. 5 March 2003 – via Los Angeles Times.
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Conflict, Cleavage, and Change in Central Asia and the Caucasus
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and Georgia's land, and wore a medallion with a scene of
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Paramilitary organisations based in Georgia (country)
560:. At least 100 people were killed in the fighting.
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751:Military units and formations established in 1989
403:Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus
440:, known for its high-profile involvement in the
694:"Georgian Fighter Wields Guns, Money and Charm"
16:Georgian paramilitary organisation (1989-1995)
678:"Christian Knights Claim Key Role in Georgia"
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756:Organised crime groups in Georgia (country)
53:Learn how and when to remove these messages
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288:Learn how and when to remove this message
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168:Learn how and when to remove this message
110:Learn how and when to remove this message
736:1989 establishments in Georgia (country)
639:. World Bank Publications. p. 272.
589:bombing as being inconclusively proven.
73:This article includes a list of general
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485:on one side and the bearer's name and
479:Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church
746:Military history of Georgia (country)
595:November 2003 parliamentary elections
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208:adding citations to reliable sources
376:Gamsakhurdia's government in exile
79:it lacks sufficient corresponding
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676:Rupert, James (14 January 1992).
564:The Mkhedrioni after Gamsakhurdia
34:This article has multiple issues.
436:was a paramilitary group in the
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421:1991–1992 South Ossetia War
417:War in Abkhazia (1992–1993)
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636:Understanding Civil War
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741:Illegal organizations
531:1991, just after the
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204:improve this article
682:The Washington Post
570:Eduard Shevardnadze
533:Soviet coup attempt
521:Georgian underworld
460:Founded in 1989 by
438:Republic of Georgia
392:Bagramyan Battalion
347:Active regions
698:The New York Times
506:Zviad Gamsakhurdia
468:groups who fought
442:Georgian Civil War
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338:Dates of operation
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456:Background
434:Mkhedrioni
303:Mkhedrioni
260:April 2014
230:newspapers
158:April 2012
75:references
39:improve it
554:Zviadists
502:Ossetians
466:guerrilla
365:Opponents
342:1989–1995
309:მხედრიონი
45:talk page
558:Chechnya
444:and the
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670:Sources
550:Tbilisi
474:Ottoman
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327:Leaders
244:scholar
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