The Special Penitentiary Service has responded to statements made today in court by opposition politician and defendant Aleko Elisashvili.

According to the agency, these statements aim to discredit the work of the Penitentiary Service.

“Aleko Elisashvili, detained on charges of attempting to commit a terrorist act, is being held at Penitentiary and High-Risk Facility No. 6. In this institution, defendants/convicts are generally placed in special single- or double-occupancy cells, where constant visual and/or electronic surveillance is conducted. Accordingly, Aleko Elisashvili’s claims about any kind of ‘settlements’ or confrontations inside the facility are an outright falsehood.

Aleko Elisashvili was admitted to Penitentiary Facility No. 6 on December 1, 2025. On December 4, 2025, he was visited by the Public Defender and the Deputy Public Defender. In their presence, Aleko Elisashvili stated that he did not wish to have a television in his cell and preferred to spend time reading books.

On December 23, 2025, Aleko Elisashvili applied to the facility’s administration requesting to purchase a television. In accordance with the law and within the prescribed timeframe, the request was forwarded to the shop operating within the facility. The television was delivered to Aleko Elisashvili on the same day the request was made.

All defendants/convicts placed in the penitentiary system, including Aleko Elisashvili, are provided with the opportunity to maintain personal hygiene with full respect for their dignity. His claim that he was not provided with items necessary for personal hygiene - specifically for nail care - is also false (the defendant has in his cell a nail clipper, a disposable razor, a mirror, a plastic wash basin, and a bucket).

The Special Penitentiary Service once again clarifies that Aleko Elisashvili is being held at Penitentiary Facility No. 6 in full compliance with legal requirements and is fully and unhindered in exercising all rights granted to him.

The Special Penitentiary Service calls on all individuals to refrain from spreading such defamatory and false information,” the statement reads.

For information, today a court hearing was held at Tbilisi City Court in the case of the politician and one of the leaders of “Lelo – Strong Georgia,” Aleko Elisashvili, who is charged with attempting to commit a terrorist act. At today’s hearing, the preventive measure imposed on the politician was reviewed and left unchanged.

During the hearing, Elisashvili stated that for one month he had not been able to purchase a nail clipper, a plastic wash basin, or a television.

“There is a prisoner card that allows you to buy items; there are items that are not allowed to be kept in a cell - I understand that. But for one month they did not allow me to buy a nail clipper, for one month they did not allow me to buy a plastic wash basin. In that prison, despite the fact that I do not belong there, they imposed even more restrictions so that I would be in a difficult situation - they thought I would start crying, miss my mother…

They gave me a television after a month, but the channels there are disgusting. Many thanks to everyone who attends marches and protests… [Over the New Year] they declared a truce in prison and there were no fights; maybe the opposition should also make a truce and not fight until Easter - they could agree on that,” Elisashvili said.