A Tbilisi court sentenced opposition figure Levan Khabeishvili to prison.

The Tbilisi City Court sentenced Levan Khabeishvili, former chairman of the opposition United National Movement party, to two and a half years in prison on charges of sabotage.

As reported by Caucasian Knot, at the end of November 2025, protesters near the Georgian Prosecutor General's Office demanded that restrictions on visits, correspondence, and telephone conversations for Levan Khabeishvili, chairman of the United National Movement's political council, be lifted so that the imprisoned politician could communicate with family members and young children.

Khabeishvili was initially accused of promising monetary rewards to officials as bribes and calling for the overthrow of the government. The penalties under these articles carried a maximum sentence of seven years in prison, but the court reclassified the bribery case under Part 1 of Article 318 of the Georgian Criminal Code—sabotage, or obstruction of the normal functioning of state structures with the aim of weakening Georgia.

The criminal prosecution was prompted by a television broadcast in which the politician promised to pay $200,000 to security officials who refused to follow orders or provide information related to their official activities.

In September 2025, former Georgian Prosecutor General Murtaza Zodelava was arrested along with Khabeishvili. He was charged with obstructing an investigation. Investigators believe he hid Khabeishvili's mobile phone, which investigators intended to seize.

Khabeishvili's defense called the charges absurd and insisted that the opposition leader's actions did not constitute a criminal offense. The court rejected these arguments. As a result, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced Levan Khabeishvili to two and a half years in prison, and Murtaza Zodelava to nine months.

Neither Zodelava nor Khabeishvili were present when the verdict was announced.

Zodelava is currently serving a sentence for another case. On May 7, the court sentenced him to seven years in prison for organizing a protest that culminated in an attempt to storm the presidential palace in October 2025.

The National Movement linked the arrest of its fellow party members to preparations for a protest on October 4—the day of local elections, which the UNM and its allies boycotted. Khabeishvili himself positioned the rally as the beginning of a "peaceful revolution" and "Georgia's liberation day."

Levan Khabeishvili himself commented on the verdict in a letter published by the Pirveli television channel.

As the politician writes, "the only thing standing between the people and victory is the fear that Ivanishvili is stoking, but there's no need to be afraid." The opposition leader called for consolidation and unity.

"I have no intention of complaining, despite the torment that accompanies me every minute spent in solitary confinement. True dissidents have been sentenced to seven years, students are in prison, so surrendering is a crime. Fear stands between us and victory, and Ivanishvili is stoking it more and more with every passing second. We will be in the hands of bandits until we muster the courage to go on the offensive. An offensive means a protest of 100,000 people," Khabeishvili wrote.

Security forces violently dispersed the protests, using tear gas and water cannons, and detained protesters. Over the course of the protests, more than a thousand people were subjected to administrative prosecution. The "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report entitled "The Main Thing About the Persecution of Protesters in Georgia".

Since November 6, security forces have prevented pro-European protesters from blocking traffic on Rustaveli Avenue, setting up a human wall of police officers along the roadway near the Georgian Parliament. Until November 6, 2025, demonstrators blocked traffic on Rustaveli Avenue for 343 consecutive days. Since security forces have prevented protesters from entering the roadway, activists have been holding daily marches.