Video of Saakashvili's detention

Video footage from the Suluguni restaurant in Kyiv showing the detention of leader of Ukraine's Movement of New Forces party Mikheil Saakashvili has appeared on the Internet, according to Hromadske.TV.

The video shows armed men brutally bringing Saakashvili out of the cafe and taking him by the hair.

On February 12, Saakashvili's associates reported his detention by unidentified people in the center of Kyiv. The SBU, the Prosecutor General's Office and the National Police told Radio Liberty that they had not detained Saakashvili.

Subsequently, the State Border Guard Service said that Saakashvili had returned to the country from which he "arrived, in violation of Ukrainian legislation."

In July 2017, Saakashvili lost his Ukrainian citizenship under a decree of the Ukrainian president. The validity of his foreign passport of a citizen of Ukraine was canceled after the loss of citizenship.

On September 10, 2017, he entered Ukraine without passing border control. In September, the court found Saakashvili guilty of illegally crossing the Ukrainian border. In addition, the court rejected his lawsuit filed against the State Migration Service regarding his recognition as a refugee.

A number of criminal cases were opened against Saakashvili in Georgia, which has been seeking his extradition from Ukraine for a long time.