The Asaval-Dasavali journalist remains charged with treason over statements about Davit Gareji, but can attend court proceedings while remaining at liberty.
Georgia’s Court of Appeals replaced journalist Dito Chubinidze’s pre-trial detention with ₾4,000 bail, and he has been released, OC Media said. The Asaval-Dasavali journalist faces treason charges over statements concerning Davit Gareji.
Chubinidze was detained on 22 October 2026, and Tbilisi City Court ordered pre-trial detention the following day. The appeals court overturned that order on 29 October 2026.
APA said the bail decision did not end the criminal proceedings: Chubinidze can take part in the case while remaining at liberty.
Davit Gareji is a rock-hewn Georgian Orthodox monastery complex in eastern Georgia. Part of the complex is involved in a border dispute between Georgia and Azerbaijan.
The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia alleges that, beginning in February 2026, Chubinidze spread false reports saying the Georgian prime minister had secretly agreed to transfer part of the complex to Azerbaijan. Prosecutors also allege that he portrayed the death of his interviewee Lazare Jorbenadze as a revenge killing linked to Jorbenadze’s purported disclosure of incriminating information about the prime minister.
The Prosecutor’s Office said no border agreement had been reached for the Davit Gareji section. It argued that the legal procedure excludes a unilateral transfer by the prime minister: border agreements require parliamentary ratification, and negotiations fall to the State Border Delimitation and Demarcation Commission of Georgia, which handles defining and marking the border.
Prosecutors characterize Chubinidze’s actions as treason, specifically sabotage, alleging that he deliberately obstructed a state agency and the border commission. The Prosecutor’s Office said the charge carries up to 4 years in prison if he is convicted.
Amendments approved on 28 October 2026 require an institutional commission to check the grounds for treatment every 2 months and a court to review them every 6 months.
Chubinidze’s lawyer, Zaza Khatiashvili, told Sova that the charges were unlawful. He demanded dismissal of the indictment and punishment for those responsible for bringing it, and said the prosecution threatened all journalists.
In post-release comments to Netgazeti carried by Sova, Chubinidze said he would never have agreed to a deal or plea bargain and said the case would reach Strasbourg.
Sova said consideration of the case would resume in Tbilisi City Court.
2 min
Transport Minister Óscar Puente says the RENFE train should have stayed stopped, or moved only at reduced speed, before it struck a stationary IRYO train.
2 min
Unnamed sources say federal investigators are examining recruitment of a candidate who shares Republican Senator Dan Sullivan’s name. A separate lawsuit seeks to block certification if the incumbent narrowly loses.
3 min
