The Levant Files

Thousands of Georgians took to the streets of Tbilisi on Friday to mark the one-year anniversary of the government's dramatic reversal on EU membership — a decision that sparked what has become the longest-running anti-government protest movement in the country since independence from the Soviet Union. According to OC Media, protesters marched from several streets across the capital to converge on parliament, the traditional site of anti-government actions, on the 366th consecutive day of demonstrations. The slogan "Till the end!" echoed through the crowds, underscoring the movement's determination to continue despite mounting pressure from authorities. The protests began on 28 November 2024, when Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced that Georgia was halting its EU membership application "until the end of 2028." For many citizens, this represented the ruling Georgian Dream party's definitive abandonment of the country's European aspirations. ...

Georgia's thriving surrogacy industry is facing mounting criticism following a series of scandals that have exposed the vulnerability of surrogate mothers operating within a largely unregulated market. Once celebrated as an accessible destination for international couples seeking fertility treatments, the country now confronts difficult questions about exploitation and oversight in a sector that has grown rapidly over the past decade. According to a report by OC Media, recent controversies have sparked serious concern in Georgia's surrogacy sector, which lacks a proper regulatory framework and leaves surrogates at significant risk. The investigation highlighted how, despite commercial surrogacy being legal since 1997, minimal safeguards exist to protect the women who carry pregnancies for intended parents, many of whom travel from abroad. The troubles came to a head in February 2025 when a baby died at Kinderly, one of Georgia's prominent reproductive medicine agencies. The...

Unverified footage purporting to show a Turkish military C130 cargo plane spiraling downwards before crashing near the Georgia-Azerbaijan border has begun circulating online, in the social media, intensifying concerns following the official confirmation of the incident. The Turkish Ministry of National Defence confirmed earlier today that one of its C130 military cargo planes, en route from Azerbaijan to Turkey, crashed on the border, initiating a joint search and rescue operation. Video: OC Media Facebook Page Early reports of the crash were quickly accompanied by footage shared across various media outlets in Azerbaijan and Georgia, depicting a large aircraft in distress. While the authenticity of these videos remains unconfirmed by official sources, they have significantly fueled public discussion and anxiety surrounding the tragic event. OC Media and T24 reported on the emerging visuals, highlighting the speed at which information, both verified and unverified, is disseminating in ...

In what experts are calling either the dawn of clairvoyant journalism or the latest episode of “state-sponsored media magic,” Georgia ’s pro-government TV channel POSTV managed to announce the arrests of six opposition figures *before* police even knocked on their doors.   The miracle of preemptive law enforcement was short-lived online — the post was hastily deleted — but not before the now-famous social media card made its rounds, sparking outrage, ridicule, and uncomfortable questions about who really writes the scripts in Georgian politics.   According to independent news outlet OC Media , the Facebook post appeared on 24 October, complete with a neat headline dismissing the Rustaveli Avenue protests as “apolitical propaganda,” followed immediately by a list of specific individuals allegedly “arrested yesterday.”   Trouble is, three of them — Tamta Gogoladze of Droa, Nika Kvitatiani of Ahali, and Giorgi Lemonjava of Droa — were, at the time, still very much walking...

Georgia 's anti-government protest movement continues to grapple with the aftermath of a failed " peaceful revolution " on October 4 , as activists face intensified state repression while debating the future direction of their year-long resistance against the ruling Georgian Dream party . According to reporting by Mikheil Gvadzabia for OC Media , the events of October 4 and subsequent days have sparked intense debates within Georgia's anti-government movement, which has been holding daily protests since November 28, 2024 , after Georgian Dream suspended the country's EU membership bid following disputed parliamentary elections . The October 4 demonstration, which drew tens of thousands to central Tbilisi , was billed as a decisive moment that would end Georgian Dream's 13-year rule in a single day. Opposition figures had promoted the date throughout summer 2025, promising a "peaceful revolution" without revealing concrete plans. However, the rall...

Twenty-one Georgian online media outlets temporarily went dark on Wednesday, 13 August, in a coordinated protest over what they describe as a rapid deterioration in press freedom. From 13:30 to 16:00, popular sites including Batumelebi, Netgazeti, Publika, and other national and regional outlets went offline, returning with messages promoting a joint campaign titled “The Lights Must Stay On” and appeals for local donations to a shared fund supporting independent media. According to the report by Salome Khvedelidze in the OC Media, the action aimed to rebut government claims that independent journalists are “foreign agents” by relying on domestic crowdfunding and explicitly requesting that foreign nationals refrain from donating. OC Media joined the effort in a support capacity as the 22nd outlet and contributed $5,000 to the common fund, stating it would not receive any of the proceeds. “Ever since Georgian Dream began its rapid slide towards authoritarianism, we’ve seen the media stan...

Georgian counter-intelligence officers have arrested two men in the Black Sea resort city of Batumi after uncovering an alleged attempt to sell radioactive uranium for US$3 million, the State Security Service of Georgia (SSG) announced late Thursday. Images released by the agency show investigators in protective gear scanning two glass vials on a car's windscreen, their dosimeters flashing red as they detect alpha and gamma emissions strong enough to trigger every alarm in the vehicle-mounted detector. According to the OC Media , the SSG says the suspects — a Georgian citizen and an unnamed foreign national — were planning a hand-to-hand sale when agents moved in. According to the official statement, preliminary tests indicate the material “could be used in the manufacture of explosive devices,” capable of causing mass casualties. The service did not specify the isotope, the degree of enrichment, or the exact weight of the seizure, citing the ongoing investigation. A familiar smugg...