On the night of August 8, 2008, Georgian troops attacked South Ossetia. This bloody war will forever remain in the memory of the people. And especially the soldiers who were fighting for their homeland. Every year, on the occasion of the next anniversary of the August events, they recall these tragic days.
“There were skirmishes already in the first days of August, but to think that they would escalate into a full-scale war, that they would attack a sleeping city at night, we, the people who had been fighting for so many years, who saw so many deaths, who grew up on tragedies, could not even imagine such a thing”, - Alan Gabaraev, an officer of the OMON of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of South Ossetia, began his story.
Before the start of the war, Georgian armed units were constantly shelling South Ossetian posts. Part of the riot police, according to Gabaraev, stood at posts around the city, the rest were in the barracks.
“Saakashvili spoke, they were surprised by his words about non-aggression, they did not believe him. Closer to the night, heavy shelling began. They were beating on the sleeping city. We did not expect such a sharp offensive by the Georgian army. I distinctly remember the first shots and our actions. Despite a slight shock, we quickly mobilized and went out to meet them,” said Gabaraev.
The following days of Gabaraev were held under constant shelling and in street battles.
“Despite the unequal forces, our military were giving a good rebuff. All these days we were fighting, helping in different parts of the city. On the night of August 7-8, for example, we headed towards the village of Tbet. We were told that our guys were fighting there, but we could not get to them, because this territory had already been completely captured by the enemy. On the way there, we were informed that among our guys there were dead and wounded. We decided to return to the city, but we were heavily shot at, and we went into the basement of a residential building on Cherepichnaya Street. There were many people there, including children. After taking a little break, we decided to move on. I remember a woman came out to us then and blessed us with holy water, wishing God's grace. It was a very touching moment," Gabaraev recalls.
All this time the shooting did not stop. According to him, they were firing from “Grad ", various large-caliber weapons, and the plane was bombing the city.
“There was no question of rest, and there was no opportunity and desire, to be honest. We also practically didn’t take food, only occasionally drank water,” he said.
Alan remembers the burned car with the Dzhussoev family on Heroes Street, trying to get out of the city, and said that there were dozens of such brutal murders by Georgians.
“They spared no one, they were shooting at unarmed people. And people just wanted to be saved and save their families. Many civilians who tried to leave the republic, unfortunately, were killed. Many frightened residents of the city came to our barracks in the hope of salvation. Women and children were very scared. We put them in the basement, and there was always one of us in the barracks. They were safe there,” said the riot policeman.
The Gabaraev family was also in the city all this time. Anxiety for their lives did not leave him for a moment during the entire war, but he could not visit them. As soon as he had the opportunity to visit them, he went to them. Seeing that all was well with them, he returned to work.
“After the Russian army entered the city, the Georgians were fleeding but some of them settled on the outskirts of the Republic, and we had to carry out sweeps. Many of us did not even get to the funeral of our colleagues. We just then visited their graves These were people dear to me. With many of them I began my path in the riot police. We were like brothers,” he said.
With his colleagues, Alan stood guard over the Motherland for many years. He's been in the riot police since he was 17. Alan was not even able to attend his graduation, as he was on exercises at the time. He felt all the bitterness of the loss that the enemy had inflicted on him. His friends, his brother, who left behind three orphans, died from a Georgian bullet.
“Georgians have killed many people dear to me. They killed my brother, my friends,” the fighter said bitterly.
During all his years of service in the OMON, he, according to him, saw only hatred on the part of Georgians and therefore does not believe that the August events in South Ossetia will never happen again.
