APwire ~ Affiliated Press News Agency

[Hesperia]

Diwan of Foreign Affairs

The Sultanate denounces the aggressive, destabilizing Sinese rhetoric. We call on Sri Rama and the Cathay state to provide constructive dialogue and prudent diplomacy, not unhelpful posturing.

 

[Anglyn]

Foreign Office

With the continued heated rhetoric coming from Kilkila, Yiyuan and Sri Rama, coupled with the latest news out of Vangala of the testing of a missile capable of delivering chemical and biological warheads has His Majesty's government quite concerned. This office will monitor the development while at the same time confer with our allies in the region regarding future policies and actions concerning the situation.

Sir Ian MacKenzie
Foreign Secretary
Kingdom of Mayaland

 

[Khemia]

Sri Rama Announces Ceasefire with Insurgents, Refugees to Receive Aid

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Refugee camps in Sinhai to receive government assistance following cease-fire with PIP insurgency.

Sri Rama has announced the successful conclusion of talks with PIP representatives near the northern border. Unity regime officials announced to the press that a cease fire had been agreed to by both parties, which the government hopes will reduce violence in Sai Yok, as well as allow Sinese aid workers to assist numerous refugee camps providing asylum to over 15,000 Khalistani and Viet who have fled violence in Sai Yok.

The Communist insurgents have been providing protection to minorities for approximately one month now, with assistance continuing to grow. Communist insurgents will be allowed to continue maintaining their weapons, according to sources within the Unity Party, so long as the PIP group continues to provide protection to minorities targeted by militias.

PIP sources stated that "Yes, we have agreed to a ceasefire. This does not mean our fight with the Union is over, but we have to accept that so long as the militia's are hunting innocent people our problems will only get worse. We need to work together to stop the killings."

It is unknown as yet whether or not the SDF and insurgents will begin cooperating on operations against militia forces, who have begun showing solidarity in the face of SDF aggression.

 

[Clarenthia]

Riots break out in Senaki, Akhaltsikhe
AP Senaki, Akhaltsikhe

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Today, thousands of students and impoverished civilians in the city of Senaki broke out in riot today. The riots started off with small a group of students who were told to remove their shirts because it had the phrase “Suck it, Kote.” The Students in the surrounding area began to attack the police officer, drawing more police to the area. The students that were rioting grew greater and greater until the impoverished sections of Senaki got word of the riots.

Taking advantage of the rioters, the impoverished people of Senaki rose up and began rioting. Within three hours, thousands of people were huddling the streets, marching and breaking windows on the cars parked all along the streets. To stop the riots, the Senaki Government called in the riot police, who came immediately, but soon found themselves overpowered.

Within the next hour, the riot police were pushed back to the Senaki Council Building, where they formed a perimeter. The Riot police successfully held back the rioting poor and students until Molotov cocktails began to be thrown into the riot police’s lines. When officials received word of the cocktails, they gave the order to use force to repel the protestors.

At 4:10 local time, shots began to be fired into the crowd. The crowds began to scatter, causing some people to become trampled to death. At some point, rioting students attacked the armed guards and were shot and killed. When Military helicopters came in and began firing at the streets, not the people, the rioters were now frantically fleeing the area.

By 5:30, nearly 30 people laid dead, most between the ages of 18-22. Nearly 3,200 troops arrived in Senaki to secure order in the city and the city was put into martial law. Every now and then, small riots will break out, but are immediately put down.

This is the first significant riot to break out in years in Akhaltsikhe. Senaki itself has over 30% of the population living in huts made of rotten wood. The living conditions in the area are some of the lowest in Himyar. The previous decades, the Government has turned a blind eye to the poverty in the area, so it is predictable that the people have had enough. We will cover this more as the story develops.

 

[Khemia]

Former Sinese Politician Sayan Jaa In League With Militias
AP International

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Though censored on Sinese television, Sayan Jaa attempted to address the Sinhai Union early Tuesday morning.

In a broadcast that was intended to be aired around the nation, former Sinese Assemblyman Sayan Jaa delivered a heavily censored speech addressing his implication in the murder of two Union negotiators at Pak Nam Pran and his association with militia groups accused of beginning what some commentators have called a 'campaign of ethnic cleansing'.

Sayan Jaa announced that the Sinhai Union was 'spreading disinformation regarding the militia threat' and was 'collaborating with enemies of the Sinese people'. He raised points regarding the ceasefire with insurgents, noting that 'no attempt was being made to apprehend anti-government terrorists'. Sayan Jaa further called upon the citizens of the nation to support his call for harsher policies against Communist insurgents and reversals in 'weak and irresponsible legislation' passed by the National Assembly in the past month.

The Sinese government maintains that Sayan Jaa is indeed responsible for the murder of two negotiators, for which it claims 'there is ample evidence to support the facts'. The Unity Party has not commented on Sayan Jaa's now confirmed association with militant groups throughout North Sinhai, and the President has made no comment on demands by Sayan Jaa to step down from her office.

Unity Party officials stated that "knowing that Sayan Jaa is a small comfort accompanied by a dozen more compounded problems. We now know that the leader the militia's have selected has a history of violence in negotiations, and an acceptable compromise with the radicals in the North seems now even more out of our reach."

 

[Keida]

Jizhou Dismisses Oikawan Advisers
AP International

In a move unprecedented in the six decade history of the Oikawan Empire, the Republic of Jizhou has expelled the Empire's advisers from its various ministries in Yiyuan. The ruling Jizhou Nationalist Party, too, has dismissed advisers of Oikawan origin from its Guiding Committee and Council on Foreign Relations. The dismissal comes as a response to Oikawan protests against Jizhou's incursion into another state considered by many to be part of the Empire, Tenzing.

This radical action has not gone without resistance within Jizhou. Government sources suggest that certain pro-Oikawa factions have vehemently opposed the action, which appears to have originated with Premier Li Yuying and officials close to him, such as Foreign Minister Dan Yimou. The move comes as a surprise to many, including officials in Nokanawa, who viewed Li as more pro-Oikawa than the presently-incapacitated President Zhang Bowen.

The status of the President himself is in question, as he is currently on hiatus in Nokanawa. Oikawan officials could not be reached for comment on Jizhou or its President.

Some analysts see this move by Yiyuan as a de facto declaration of independence from Oikawa.

 

[Touzen]

Oikawan Head of Government Kihara Resigns
AP International

Speaking to the Imperial Diet, Imperial Minister of War and Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Council of Ministers Kihara Itsuki announced his immediate resignation from the highest political office in the Oikawan Empire.

The position of Chairman of the Council of Minister serves a role akin to Head of Government in other political systems and can be combined with any of the ministerial offices.

In his resignation speech, Kihara cited the government's 'failure to appropriately confront the crisis in Tenzing' for his decision to give way to a successor. Having served in the position of Chairman of the Council for almost 9 years, Kihara is one of the longest serving Heads of Government in postwar Oikawan history.

Kihara also announced that he suggested General Yoshikawa, who currently serves in the Supreme Command of the Imperial Army, as his successor in a private audience with the Oikawan Emperor.

Yoshikawa is generally seen as being representative of a group of hardliners in the Oikawan political establishment who has advocated controversial solutions to political issues before, such has his advocacy of mass detention of protesters during a riot in Yiyuan last year. It would be the first time in 20 years that a candidate perceived to be a hardliner would take up the office again. Kihara had been one of the prominent faces that oversaw the politics of détente in the 90s and the transformation of the Empire into the entity it is today. He had been a keen supporter of nuclear disarmament and reconciliation with Western powers.

 

[Wazistan]

Bishara allies pushing for acclamation in presidential vote
AP Ijad

As the country's political leaders continue to wrangle over the formation of a new government, quiet discussion as also begun among party leaders on what is expected to be among the new parliament's first number of business: the election of the Islamic Republic's first president since the collapse of the Islamic system. According to the popular opposition Nawaz website, associates of opposition icon Jamal Bishara have held a series of talks in recent days with representatives of the major political parties, laying the groundwork for the 71-year old's anticipated election to the highest office in the land.

Bishara is expected to meet with both Tanzim chief Mustafa Kaddoumi and fellow opposition leader Ibrahim Radwan, deputy head of the Wazistan Islamic National Movement, in the coming days.

According sources familiar with the talks, Bishara's advisers have been keen on avoiding a divisive vote within the electoral college, a constitutional body comprised of both houses of parliament and an equal number of delegates from the provinces, when it votes on the presidency. In fact, Hassan Awad al-Toukan, Bishara's closest adviser, has reportedly warned political leaders that Bishara will not seek the presidency unless he is voted in by acclamation, saying anything less would be a "severe dishonor to the dignity of the chairman."

While most parties have said they will support Bishara for the presidency, several parties, including the Shiite Hezbollah, have suggested they could field their own candidates.

International analysts consider Bishara as the only person with the prestige and popular support to bring Wazistan's fractured ethnic communities together, and view his presidency as key to providing stability to Wazistan's shaky political system.

In Wazistan, the new presidency is largely ceremonial with few real political powers.

 

[Confederal Republics]

Policemen arrest members of a separatist group in Farpoint
AP Southport

Spokesmen of the Farpoint Canton Constabulary have announced arrests of four men and two women in the Farpoint Canton municipality of Alton Down in suspicion of membership in Nordisk Frihet, a separatist group calling for autonomy or independence for members of Cornavia's Nordic minority. In addition to the arrests, several licensed and unlicensed firearms and what were described as "explosive-making components" were confiscated from the suspects.

The raids took place early in the morning in three locations in Alton Down and in one location in the city of Farpoint itself, and involved armed police officers. Police spokesmen refused to clarify whether the Commonwealth Security Service, which is responsible for prevention of domestic terrorism within the Commonwealth of Cornavia, was involved in the arrests or if the operation was solely the work of the local Constabulary's Anti-Terrorism Branch. Policemen believe that the suspects were planning to stage acts of terrorism in the Farpoint Canton.

Nordisk Frihet is a militant separatist group that has been active in the Farpoint Canton and elsewhere in Cornavia since 1981. Assessments of the Commonwealth Security Service indicate that the group has up to 50 active members and several hundred sympathizers. However, Nordisk Frihet has not carried out attacks after the killing of Pyke Alderman Geoffrey Stephens (Chr.) in the November of 2009. The perpetrators of that attack are still at large.

Though policemen and prosecutors in the Farpoint Canton are confident of the validity of their prosecution, Nordic separatist advocates have been quick to raise protests against the arrests. Einar Freudenthal, chairman of the small Järnmark Freedom Party, criticized Cornavian law enforcement of "bias" and called for the involvement of Nordic community members in the investigation. The Jänmark Freedom Party is a nonparliamentary political group often described as the political wing of Nordisk Frihet and claiming to resist economic disfranchisement of Cornavia's Nordic minority.

 

[Frescania]

Problems Continue as more people cross the border from Wazistan
AP Buena Tierra

Even with relatively peaceful elections and the situation starting to get better in Wazistan, people are still crossing the border towards Frescania. Many of them say that while they are happy to see Wazistan begin to recover, there is no future for them in the war torn nation.

The provinces of Catamarca and Andaluz have once again increased their number of guards in the border region as more people continue to enter. The two Governors called on the national Government to “send more federal troops to help relieve the pressure on our borders”.

As more and more Wazistanis come in, many in the region are starting to swing towards the radical parties, which have promised to deport all the illegals and talk “face to face and with no remorse” with the Wazistani authorities. While the radical parties have not been a threat, the inability by both Frescania and Wazistan to agree on a solution could help them gain seats in the National Assembly. But for now, the situation continues to heat up.

 

[Batavië]

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We wish to inform our Frescanian partners that Immigration Batavia can take refugee applications at the embassy and consulates in Frescania. All legitimate refugee and asylum claims will be processed and successful applicants will be flown to Batavië at Immigration Batavia's expense. We hope that this offering will be properly advertised to refugees from Wazistan entering Frescania and we also hope that it will help alleviate some of the immigration pressure in your country.

 

[Wazistan]

Statement from the Foreign Ministry

The Foreign Ministry is deeply concerned over the rise in anti-Wazi sentiment along the Wazi-Frescanian border. The Wazi government is committed to working with its partners in Frescania to advance comprehensive immigration reform and restore confidence in bilateral relations.

 

[Batavië]

Batavian Opposition Leader Calls For Revaluation of Commonwealth With Conditions
AP, Vlaanderen

Leader of the official opposition, Max Ham of the Conservatieve Unie Partij, has called for a 'total revaluation' of the Batavian Commonwealth, but there is a catch. Speaking before the press after Question Period today he said that perhaps Vlaanderen and Al Azir should take their 'special relationship' a bit slower and look at other options for cultural and socio-economic benefits.

'I think that perhaps for now we should be looking into a special cooperation organisation designed specifically for just our two countries. Fulanistan is indeed a former Batavian colony, but I think it is a bit rushed to move right into a full blown commonwealth. Having said that, this does not mean that we should bow down to any demands that come out of this Himyarite conference. At least not immediately. We should listen to everything they present us with, so long as it is realistic and civil in tone, and then take a short, mind you I say short, amount of time to work through our options alongside our Fulanistani partners. We can always move forward with commonwealth-like plans in the future, but I do not think that that is appropriate right now. Again, we listen to the Himyarite conference, look through our options and maybe re-write some things and make it less offensive.'

Mr Ham said that he had presented this idea to the governing Social Democratic Party earlier in the day, but had not yet received an official response from the House Leader or the Prime Minister's Office. Nearly all of the opposition parties, including the Vrije Partij and even the Bataafsche Arbijders Partij, now clinging on to only 6 seats, have stated that they agree with the Conservatieve Unie's approach to this particular issue. There are even rumours circulating around Parliament that some brave MPs from the Social Democrats are also quietly voicing support for the idea. With nothing yet official it is hard to tell what stance the government will take.

Most political analysts in Vlaanderen expect the government to hold off on any decision until after they receive the statements from the gathered group of Himyarite countries.

 

[Wazistan]

Officials: Kurds demand appointment of non-Arab PM
AP Ijad

Coalition talks between the Tanzim and Kurdish and Christian parties have been thrown into disarray after the top Kurdish parliamentarian demanded the prime minister's post go to a non-Arab, officials close to the discussion have told the Associated Press. The demand by Osman Karayilan, the head of the Kurdistan National List coalition, has heighten concerns that government formation talks could be dragged out for months, paving the way for a Shiite-backed insurgency to gather strength. Already several prominent politicians have condemned the Kurdish move and calling for Kurdish leader Karim Barzanji to remove him from the coalition's negotiating team.

A spokesman for the Kurdistan Social Party, which Barzanji heads, declined to comment on the growing controversy.

Defending his demand, Karayilan said it was "completely unacceptable" for the two highest executive positions in the land to go to two Arabs. WDPO chairman Jamal Bishara, the country's revered democratic icon, is widely expected to be elected president when parliament holds its first session. Karayilan said the historic nature of the Wazi state showed that balance was needed when it came to share power among the country's different ethnic and religious communities and that the senior state posts should be distributed fairly among the communities.

The demand would immediately disqualify Mustafa Kaddoumi and even reformist opposition leader Ibrahim Radwan.

Tanzim officials have yet to comment on the Kurdish demand, though a meeting of the party's powerful Revolutionary Council is set to meet on Friday to discuss the issue and other matters related to the negotiations. However, key associates of Kaddoumi have reportedly blasted the Kurds in discussions with the right-wing Christian Patriotic Party, calling their demands "a direct challenge to the will of the people" and aise pressure on the party to abandon their longtime allies.

However, that appears unlikely after a top PP official defended the Kurds' demand in appearance on state television.

If both the PP and Kurdish bloc quit the talks and sit in the opposition, it would mark a major setback for Kaddoumi and could make almost impossible for any party to form a majority coalition.

 

[Clarenthia]

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Akhaltsikhi Executor Kostantine Abkhaz speaking
AP Tetri Tsqaro

As the failure of Akhaltsikhe’s mission in Barazi becomes known throughout Akhaltsikhe, Executor Kostantine Abkhaz’s popularity has begun to rapidly decline. Abkhaz has promised to bring many reforms to the nation, but now that members of the National Council have stated they won’t vote for it, many people in Akhaltsikhe believe that the Executor is unable to neither handle the Council nor get any reforms passed.

Akhaltsikhi Executor Kostantine Abkhaz preached many different reforms, mainly dealing with increasing the General Welfare of the people. The reasons his reforms aren’t going through are because the Ministry of Finance released a statement that unless tax brackets were increased significantly, the budget would in no conceivable way remain in surplus. The more conservative members of Akhaltsikhe’s council said that “Akhaltsikhe’s budget surplus is one of the greatest aspects of the nation.”

Executor Abkhaz replied saying “It matters not if our budget is in surplus if 34% of our population is in poverty, if millions of people live in shacks, if millions have no access to any type of healthcare, and if millions are out of work.” The conservative members stated that Abkhaz’s mission wasn’t the mission or the purpose of Government. The deadlock in the Council has stopped all reforms. On a lighter note, the Council did enact income taxes.

Abkhaz continued to say that one of the reasons the mission in Barazi failed was the inability of Akhaltsikhe’s armed forces to meet the requirements needed to sustain a war effort overseas. Abkhaz said that it may be necessary to increase the defense budget from A$2.17 Trillion to A$2.635 Trillion. He said that the extra funds will increase the nation’s all around defense capabilities. Again, the situation in the Council is making it difficult for Abkhaz to get anything through.

This is the Associated Press, reporting from Tetri Tsqaro, Akhaltsikhe

 

[Wazistan]

Nawaz: WPDO chairman to meet influential Shiite cleric
AP Ijad

The popular opposition Nawaz website is reporting that senior Wazi leader Jamal Bishara will meet Friday afternoon with one of the country's most influential Shiite clerics in the hopes of gaining support for Shiite participation in the new government. Quoting unnamed sources within the Wazi People's Democratic Organization, Nawaz says the chairman arrived in Najaf, the seat of the Shiite religious leadership, in the early morning hours and that he is due to attend the funeral of a top WPDO leader before sitting down Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Ali al-Fahim.

The site says the meeting will be behind closed-doors and that press coverage will not be allowed.

Securing religious support for Shiites to join the political process is seen as critical, Western diplomats have said. Currently, Hezbollah, the largest Shiite part, has made it clear it will not join any government, accusing the country's political establishment of seeking to undermine their community. They have the support of another influential Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali Mahdhavi Kashani.

However, insiders say they believe support for the Shiite-dominated Party for National Solidarity from al-Fahim could offset any potential backlash from other quarters of the Shiite leadership. Unlike Kashani and other senior clerics, al-Fahim is considered a pragmatist willing to work with the country's new political leaders. He is one of the most respected and revered figures of the Shiite clergy and has come to be seen by many as an important religious counterweight to Kashani.

 

[Clarenthia]

Anti-CRA protests erupt
AP, Abkhalt

Protests broke out today all over the Northern cities in Abkhalt (OOC: Abkhalt is the new international name for Akhaltsikhe, for you lazy guys who don’t feeling like spelling the whole thing out.) has the Ethnic Georigans show their discontent with the new Citizens’ Relief Act signed by Executor Kostantine Abkhaz.

The protests started in Abasha and soon spread to Senaki, Khoni, Kaspi, Vani, and Kareli. The protests numbered in the thousands across the nation and for the most part, they went uninterrupted. Within a few hours, Abkhalt’s Arab population, which the Citizens’ Relief Act mainly helps, took extreme offense to the protests and began making protests of their own.

At this point, Elite Guard troops appeared in the cities and ordered the dismissing of the protests. Several people of Arab ethnicity were arrested for quote “terroristic acts, under authority of the Council, enforcing the Terrorism Act of 1962.” However, as far as we know, no person of Georgian Ethnicity has been arrested.

A few moments after the protests, a protest broke out in Tetri Tsqaro, the capital of Abkhalt, which was quickly brought to the grounds of Council Building. Once there, fully armed and fully equipped Abkhalti Army Soldier arrived on the scene and were given strict “shoot on sight” orders if the protests crossed into the perimeter of the Council Building. Thankfully, no protester crossed the line and no one was injured.

Within thirty minutes, the Army was ordered to dismiss the protests. With that, the protests in the North ended, but the South remained vocal, no demonstrations or protests broke out in the southern sections of the country.

This is the AP, reporting from Abkhalt.

 

[Socialist Commonwealth]

Protestors besiege Akhaltsikhen Embassy
AP Rijeka

Following reports from Akhaltsikhe, that the government of the Himyarite country plans to introduce a policy of racial segregation, numerous civil rights groups in Carentania have taken offense to this move. Protests were the strongest in the Carentanian capital of Rijeka, were a crowd of two thousand people marched to the Akhaltsikhen embassy and have since then blockaded all entrances to the building. A spokesperson of the protest commented that they intended to stay until the government of Akhaltsikhe abandoned their plans - or, failing to do that, the upcoming All-Workers Congress, Carentanias highest political authority consisting of delegates from all local worker councils, would revoke diplomatic recognition of the country.

The protests even interrupted the plans of the Commissariate for Foreign Affairs, which had just summoned the Akhaltsikhen ambassador to receive a strongly worded protest note from the Carentanian government. The Commissar was unavailable for comment on this specific developement, but announced he would leave all decisions about possible harsher sanctions on Akhaltsikhe to the All-Workers Congress that is scheduled to take place during the next days. With the Congress so close, this is not an uncommon decision and has long tradition in the Workers' Republic.

Members of the Union of Communist Workers, Carentanias biggest labor union, were also quick to comment on the policies of the Akhaltsikhen government. Calling the racial segregation policy "just one step short of open slavery" the UCW voiced their support for any acts of resistance to the establishment of apartheid in Akhaltsikhe.
"We can understand anyone who burns down the construction sites for these ghettos. We can understand anyone who beats back at police officers trying to enforce the relocation. We can understand anyone who sabotages the infrastructure enabling this atrocity. And we will aid anyone willing to do so."

 

[Clarenthia]

A response to Apartheid
AP Tetri Tsqaro


Today, Akhaltsikhe’s Executor, Kostantine Abkhaz, announced more details in his plan to build the tenements and hospitals in his nation. He said that the tenements and hospitals would be built outside of cities and proclaimed a racial town, which we’ve thought to be mainly for the ethnic Urodi in the nation.

As a result, fierce protests and riots erupted throughout the nation. Early estimates say that nearly 56,000 people are up in protests. The majority of the protests are in Tetri Tsqaro, the capital of the Nation. From what he can see, nearly 10,000 people are participating in protests in the city. Most are protesting the Georgian Government, calling it oppressive and blind.

The protests went as far as the Atrium, the Government’s Building. Armed guards kept the Protesters back. After a few hours, we concluded that the protests were mainly in ethnic Urodi people believing they have been put down for decades, but soon we found the ethnic-Georgians beginning to participate in the protests as well, this is when things got bad.

News spread of Carentanian Civilians besieging the Akhaltsikhe Embassy. In retaliation, mainly ethnic-Georgians besieged the Carentanian Embassy and began doing rather violent measures, which including throwing fire bottles at the embassy. An official police statement said that “the police force [of Tetri Tsqaro] is too hard pressed to aid the Carentanians at the moment.”

However, that didn’t matter because soon ethnic Urodi came and actually began to fist fight the Georgians at the Embassy. These fist fights spread rapidly and the entire city of Tetri Tsqaro seemed to be in riot.

Soon, tanks and helicopters began to appear in the city and one helicopter landed at the Atrium. Our reporters were not allowed to get close to the Atrium, but witnesses say that 10 people went onto the Helicopters, all of them ethnic Georgians. We believe that a good deal of the Council and maybe even the Executor was evacuated from the city.

Soldiers continued to arrive in the city, fighting back the riots, securing the Carentanian Embassy, and protecting important Government structures. As of now, the violence has not spread beyond the borders of Akhaltsikhe.

International Criticism of the Executor has been stated by both Hajr and Carentania. As of now, there hasn’t been a single diplomatic statement in response to the two nations. Both nations agreed on the Executor’s plan and Carentania went so far as to announce they’ll support anyone who goes against the Government and may revoke diplomatic recognition.

We’ll have more on this story as it continues.

 

[Clarenthia]

Threats of Civil War
AP Tetri Tsqaro

Akhaltsikhe is divided into 5 provinces. Four of the five are called “Uroduah Homelands” and, as the Government puts it, are lands specifically for ethnic Urodi people. Confusingly enough, the four Urodi Provinces have Georgian Names. One of the four provinces, Suchumi, today threatened to secede from Akhaltsikhe if the Government doesn’t reverse the Apartheid policies that it has followed for nearly 50 years.

The announcement was made by Ahmad Fakhri, who is a Regional Manager for Graneli Industries and also a vocal political activist for Urodi Rights. The Announcement was made in the city of Tel Keppe on the Suchumi Capitol Building in front of thousands of people. Fakhri outlined that the Georgian Government cannot continue to oppress the people of Akhaltsikhe any longer.

Fakhri said that he had “sufficient troops and arms to fight off the oppressive Georgians if they refuse to meet our sensible demands. We urge the other Urodi Provinces to follow in suit so that we may have a nation where we can live in peace.”

The other three provinces have yet to make a statement, but the Georgian Government has. They called Fakhri and all his supporters’ terrorists in violation of the Terrorism Act. They’ve also ordered troops to the area immediately and called for Fakhri’s arrest.

Feelings on the situation are mixed, but one thing is for sure, things are getting extremely tense in Akhaltsikhe.