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Cease-Fire In Georgia Takes Effect


14 August 2004 -- A cease-fire went into effect today between Georgia and its separatist South Ossetia region.

Both Georgian and Russian officials said the truce has been generally respected.

But a Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman said one Georgian peacekeeper was wounded after being hit by a sniper near South Ossetia's main city, Tskhinvali.

The cease-fire was agreed yesterday after Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania's convoy allegedly came under fire in the latest violence in South Ossetia.

No one was reported injured in that incident. But fighting on 12 August left four people dead and several wounded.

Georgia's parliament yesterday passed a non-binding resolution demanding that Russian peacekeepers withdraw from South Ossetia and that a new international presence be arranged.

The Russian Foreign Ministry rejected proposals to send extra international observers to South Ossetia, including from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which helped broker the cease-fire.

(ITAR-TASS/AFP)

For the latest news on the tensions in South Ossetia, see RFE/RL's webpage on Ossetia.

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