On 6 July 2016, the thirty-seventh meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) chaired by the United Nations was held in Gali.
The participants discussed various issues on the agenda, including follow up of the 19 May fatal incident at the crossing point, Khurcha village. They exchanged updates on the ongoing investigations of the incident and subsequent legal proceedings conducted by the Georgian and Abkhaz law enforcement authorities. The Georgian participants submitted additional materials on their investigation to all participants.
The participants also discussed the kidnapping and disappearance of a former Gali district official in February 2007, as well as, the murder of one Abkhaz high-ranking military officer in Gali town in October 2008. The Abkhaz participants handed over a document related to the second case to the Georgian participants. It was agreed to continue a discussion on those cases and the 19 May incident at the next IPRM meeting.
Other issues, including concerns about erection of barriers (“borderization”), modalities of crossing and the required crossing documents for the local population, were discussed in detail.
The participants also noted usefulness of hotline in addressing emerging issues in a prompt and adequate manner.
The meeting took place in a constructive and businesslike atmosphere characterized by professional engagement of all participants.
It was agreed to hold the next meeting of the IPRM in Gali on 2 August 2016.