Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has been sentenced to an additional four years and six months in prison on charges of illegal border crossing, bringing his total jail time to 12½ years. Saakashvili and his defense team argue that the charges are politically motivated. Serving as president from 2004 to 2013, Saakashvili led significant reforms but faced criticism for authoritarian tendencies. After his party’s 2012 election loss, he moved to Ukraine and returned to Georgia in 2021, where he was arrested. Currently, he is in a prison hospital receiving treatment for chronic conditions. His lawyer denounced the recent verdict, declaring it evidence of Saakashvili’s status as a political prisoner under the current government.
