Russian troops in control of main Georgian cities and ports

After three days of fighting between Georgian and Russian troops in the breakaway region of South Ossetia, Russian troops are said to be in control of the capital Tskhinvali.

Georgian forces have completely withdrawn from Tskhinvali, the Russian military said Sunday, thereby confirming earlier accounts by Georgia that its forces had withdrawn from the city.

But Tbilisi denied that its forces had completely pulled out of South Ossetia.

The ground fighting between Russian and Georgian forces had been the fiercest at Tskhinvali, in infantry battles throughout the night as Russian forces engaged Georgian troops holding heights overlooking the town.

'We're not fighting against the Georgian state, rather instead carrying out a peace mission,' a member of the Russian general staff, Anatoli Nogowizyn, said in Moscow Sunday.

Around 10,000 Russian troops and 300 tanks are now in South Ossetia.

Russia Sunday intensified airstrikes and a naval blockade against Georgia, as international diplomats sought ways to bring a ceasefire to the Caucasus province South Ossetia.

Georgia claimed Sunday that 15 of its cities have been bombarded by Russia.


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