Updated 09.55 | Published 09.42
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Over 40 protesters were arrested during Thursday’s anti-government protests in Georgia, the Interior Ministry in Tbilisi said.
The demonstrations followed the government’s announcement to freeze all talks about EU membership for four years. Tens of thousands of Georgians gathered in protests that lasted well into the night in the capital Tbilisi and other cities in the country.
Several protesters are said to have been beaten by police, who deployed tear gas and water cannons and fired rubber bullets at the crowd.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, over 30 employees were injured in connection with the protests, including two female politicians.
Those arrested are accused of hooliganism and disobeying police orders.
Georgia has formal status as a candidate country for EU membership, but the government has turned increasingly towards Moscow in recent years, pushing through several criticized legislative changes similar to Russian drafts.
Both the opposition and large parts of the Western world have accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of electoral fraud in the disputed election at the end of October.