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Russian troops enter South Ossetia after Georgia offensive kills 15 people

A Russian army convoy entered South Ossetia yesterday and Russian planes attacked a Georgian military base, reports said, after Georgian forces pounded the capital of the breakaway province and warned of “war” if Russia intervened.

Amid spiraling tensions, Moscow threatened retaliation after Russian forces in the beleaguered city of Tskhinvali were reported killed in a night-time Georgian artillery and air barrage.

Dozens of Russian tanks and military vehicles headed for the 4km Roki tunnel, which leads into South Ossetia, an Agence-France Presse reporter at the frontier said.

Russia’s three main news agencies said a convoy had crossed into South Ossetia.

“We cannot allow the deaths of our countrymen to go unpunished. The guilty parties will receive the punishment they deserve,” Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said earlier.

Georgia’s National Security Council warned, however, that there would be “a state of war” between the two countries if the Russian military convoy entered the rebel region, which gets strong backing from Moscow.

Russian aircraft, meanwhile, launched an attack on a military base near Tbilisi, Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili said.

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili warned of “large-scale military intervention” and ordered a mass mobilization.

He said his country’s operation had been successful and “most of South Ossetia’s territory is liberated and is controlled by Georgia.”

Georgian Foreign Minister Ekaterine Tkeshelashvili told the British Broadcasting Corp that Tbilisi was appealing to world leaders to press Moscow to stop “direct military aggression” on its territory.

South Ossetia broke away from Georgia in the early 1990s and has since been a constant source of friction between Georgia and Russia. The Georgian government accuses Moscow of wanting to take over South Ossetia.

At least 15 civilians were killed in the fighting and Georgian shelling and air raids on Tskhinvali, South Ossetian officials said.

A Georgian officer said there were also wounded and dead among the Georgian military but declined to give figures.

The Russian military said 10 Russian peacekeepers in Tskhinvali had been killed when Georgian shells hit their barracks, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported.

The International Committee of the Red Cross called for a “humanitarian corridor” to be opened in South Ossetia to allow ambulances to evacuate the wounded.

“Ambulances cannot move, hospitals are reported to be overflowing, surgery is taking place in corridors,” a spokeswoman told journalists in Geneva.
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