Georgian police use water cannon to repel protesters from presidential palace

Tbilisi: Georgian police used pepper spray and water cannon to force protesters away from the presidential palace in the capital Tbilisi on Saturday, amid a large demonstration on the day of municipal elections, a Reuters witness said.

A group of protesters attempted to force entry to the presidential palace, after some opposition figures called for a "peaceful revolution" against the incumbent Georgian Dream party, which they accuse of being pro-Russian and authoritarian.

The country's pro-Western opposition has been staging protests since last year, when Georgian Dream won an election that its critics say was fraudulent.

Georgian Dream then froze Georgia's European Union accession talks, abruptly halting a long-standing national goal.

On Saturday, armoured riot police drove protesters from the presidential palace using pepper spray and water cannon in the final minutes before polls closed in municipal elections, which Georgia's largest opposition blocs have boycotted.