Georgia urges ceasefire, talks after heavy clashes

MEGVREKISI, Georgia-Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili called for an immediate ceasefire with South Ossetian separatists on Thursday after days of fighting raised fears of new war in the Caucasus.He repeated an offer of "full autonomy" for the breakaway region. Russia could be the guarantor of that autonomy, he said, adding that Russia had indicated to him it was trying to rein in the separatists."I offer you an immediate ceasefire and the immediate beginning of talks," Saakashvili said in a televised address.Georgia's breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia enjoy the political and financial backing of Russia, but ex-Soviet Georgia has allied itself with the West and is pushing for membership of NATO. It lies at the heart of a region emerging as is a vital energy transit route.Saakashvili said Georgian positions were still coming under artillery fire, but that he had ordered his forces not to retaliate. "It was a painful decision, but we have suffered casualties and villagers' homes have been damaged," he said.South Ossetian officials were not immediately available for comments on the Saakashvili initiative.Loud explosions and automatic gunfire could be heard on Thursday from villages around the breakaway capital Tskhinvali, 100 km (60 miles) north of the Georgian capital Tbilisi towards the mountainous Russian border.One Georgian peacekeeper was killed and four wounded. A Georgian armored personnel carrier (APC) was destroyed in fighting around the Georgian-held village of Avnevi. To read more go to:
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSL768040420080807
As in the days of Noah...