Georgian Forces Retake 2 Towns Held by Rebels
Fighters seeking to restore the ousted president suffered a major setback Wednesday when troops loyal to Georgian leader Eduard A. Shevardnadze retook two rebel-held towns.
The victories in western Georgia were the latest in a string of recent successes for Shevardnadze, who gained momentum this week after he unified his troops and neighboring Russia deployed soldiers to guard vital railroads.
Soso Margishvili, the main spokesman for the Georgian military, said government loyalists retook the rebel military stronghold of Senaki after a daylong battle that killed 20 rebels and five government troops.
Government soldiers later seized Khobi, the last major town on the highway to Zugdidi, the hometown and political base of former President Zviad Gamsakhurdia, Margishvili said.
Loyalist troops on Monday had captured the important Black Sea port of Poti, and their seizure of Senaki was another key step in their quest to crush Gamsakhurdia’s forces.
The rebel army, believed to number up to 10,000 men, is trying to reinstate Gamsakhurdia, an ardent nationalist ousted in January, 1992.
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