By Davit Kachkachishvili
TBILISI, Georgia (AA) – Some 298 people have been detained and 143 police officers injured during days of demonstrations in the Georgian capital Tbilisi, according to Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, the country's deputy interior minister.
Darakhvelidze said some protesters who took part in demonstrations in front of the parliament have used violence against the police, adding that an investigation is ongoing.
On the latest developments around contested elections and the country’s path to EU membership, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze accused the opposition and their supporters of sowing instability.
The demonstrations are against Kobakhidze's decision to suspend the country's EU accession negotiations on Nov. 28, and have continued for a sixth day in various cities.
Kobakhidze has suspended EU accession talks for four years after the European Parliament rejected the country’s Oct. 26 election results.
Georgia, formerly part of the Soviet Union, has enshrined the goal of joining the EU into its constitution.
In Tbilisi, demonstrators gathered in front of the parliament building in the evening and blocked Shota Rustaveli Street. Police took extensive security measures in the area.
*Writing by Serdar Dincel