On August 8, 2008, the five-day Russian-Georgian war for South Ossetia began. It was preceded by clashes in the zone of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict in the early 1990s. The parties accused each other of violating the ceasefire of 1992. According to the results of an international investigation initiated by the European Union, on August 8, Georgian military forces subjected the city of Tskhinval to massive shelling. On the same day, Russia which had previously supported the self-proclaimed republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia entered the conflict. In Moscow, the entry into the war was referred to as a “peace enforcement operation”. According to some testimonies, Russian troops entered South Ossetia on August 7, that is, before the shelling of Tskhinvali. The fighting lasted five days and ended on August 12 with the defeat of the Georgian army. Two weeks later, Russia officially recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. The first war in the 21st century in Europe killed 850 people on both sides, thousands were injured and wounded, tens of thousands of ethnic Georgians were expelled from South Ossetia, Georgian villages were destroyed.
August war 2008
Most read

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 6-10 October, 2025
Armenian political analyst: 'Aliyev sabotages peace process initiated by Trump'
PEACE Act or “Armenian lobby”? A bill has been introduced to US Congress to sanction Azerbaijan if it attacks Armenia
Three Polish nationals attacked in Tbilisi, suspects arrested
Aliyev and Putin meet against backdrop of AZAL crash and PEACE Act bill

Latest news in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, summary. Live
Public clash between Putin and Pashinyan: statistics back Armenian PM
Georgian poet behind bars: protest and arrest of Zviad Ratiani
Failed ‘peaceful revolution’ and new repressions: where Georgia is heading after October 4
Independent Abkhaz journalist Inal Khashig on the bot created in his name to praise the government
