Amnesty Draws Attention To Georgia's Displaced

As EU monitors deploy in Georgia to enforce a cease-fire in Tbilisi's conflict with Russia, Amnesty International has drawn attention to the tens of thousands of people displaced by the conflict.

"Shootings, looting, and ethnically motivated attacks in South Ossetia and the adjacent Russian-controlled 'buffer zone' are undermining the welfare of the remaining residents and the right to return of those ethnic Georgians who fled their homes," said Nicola Duckworth, the human rights group's Europe and Central Asia program director.
 
Duckworth called on the Russian and Georgian governments, as well as the leadership of South Ossetia, to "guarantee security and provide assistance to all people without discrimination."

Amnesty also called on all parties to cooperate in removing unexploded munitions, and for an international fact-finding mission "to carry out a thorough investigation of all allegations of serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the course of the conflict."