(Read the full article on civil.ge)

Asked whether the U.S. is considering sanctions for Georgian officials over the anti-LGBT violence in Tbilisi on July 5th, which left at least 53 journalists attacked, and was followed by the death of one of the attacked journalists, U.S. State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said “we have a number of tools to hold accountable those responsible in some way for human rights abuses, for violence around the world. Sanctions are indeed one of those tools,” CIVIL.GE reported.

“We don’t preview sanctions before we enact them,” the Spokesperson asserted, adding that “but we are following the situation very closely, and we are committed to seeing to it that those responsible for this are held accountable.”

The State Department Spokesperson said U.S. urges all political actors in Georgia to very publicly condemn this violence. “When it comes to the Georgian Government, I would reiterate our calls for a thorough investigation of this that leads to the perpetrators of this horrific crime being brought to justice,” he noted.