Weeks of tension between pro-Western Georgia and rebels in breakaway South Ossetia, which has links with Russia, have escalated into heavy fighting.
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Merkel on first official visit to Algeria ... Russia's Interfax news agency quotes the leader of South Ossetia, Eduard Kokoity, as saying that hundreds of civilians have died in fighting in the region's capital Tskhinvali. This has not been confirmed by other sources. Russia said it had sent "reinforcements" into South Ossetia while Georgia said its forces controlled Tskhinvali after launching an offensive. The Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili claimed their forces had shot down two Russian combat planes over Georgian territory. Earlier, Russia's defence ministry had denied a similar report. German Chancellor Angela Merkel joined the calls for an end to the fighting along with the European Union, the Western alliance NATO and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
(Deutsche Welle)
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